Watch and React
by anilikz0985
Summary: KnB characters are going to react to Knb in a joint training camp like scenerio with some guests. Read to find out who. Rating might change. Fluff moments is likely to happen but no promise of development.
1. Chapter 1

**First fic! So whatever is wrong in first fic is probably wrong here.**

 **I don't own KnB!**

 **On to the story now!**

...

Prolog

Seirin High Basketball club was training as hard as ever. Now that the Kiseki no Sedai had their spirits back, the upcoming championships were going to be as challenging as ever.

"Alright, everyone gather around." Riko Aida yelled. Everyone quickly gathered around the coach. "This is an important announcement." She said. "This year we will be holding a Winter Training Camp." Everyone groaned. "But this year, it will not only be Seirin High." She continued. Everyone's ears perked up like a dog. "Kaijou, Shutoku, Touou, Yosen and Rakuzan will be joining us well."

…

"WHAT!?" Everyone yelled. "Kaijou, Shutoku, Touou…" Shinji Koganei stated. "Yosen and Rakuzan too." Tsuchida finished. "Yes, the coaches and I discussed this during the closing party of the Winter Cup." Riko said. "It will only be the regulars, including third years with the exception of our school. Everyone is going in our school, since we are the host." Everyone just stare at her. "That is just…" Furihata said "Insane" Kawahara finished. "The camp is going to be for a month and it starts this weekend, so go and get ready." With that statement she dismissed the club.

Everyone left the club and went to get ready for the upcoming camp.

 **The coming weekend.**

Once the entire Seirin team reached the training camp location, they can't help but gasp. The building was big, new and looked really nice and cozy. There were basketball courts, a mountain range and a beach. "Alright everyone, quit gaping and help me out." Riko yelled. Everyone hurried to the coaches side.

"How the hell did you afford this place?" the bespectacled captain Junpei Hyuga. "The contributions were split up." Riko explained. "Unfortunately, our school- despite winning the championships-couldn't get the required funding as a result the other schools had to take care of our share." Everyone stopped walking. "Is that kinda bad?" Shun Izuki asked. "Yes" Riko answered. "Which is why...our school is in charge of taking care of the other schools." Everyone gave a blank look "Huh" Riko gave them an innocent smile (-_- yeah right!). "You know…" she said "Cooking and cleaning."

…

"What!?" They all yelled. "It's the least we could do." Riko said. The team sighed. "Guess we have no choice." Hyuga said. "Oh man!" Red and black haired with funny said "Can't believe we're playing housekeepers for those rainbow haired weirdos." This man was none other than the team's ace, Taiga Kagami. He felt a large hand on his head. "Now Kagami, this is something that can't be helped, so let's do our best and have fun." This was stated by none other than the team's center, Teppei Kiyoshi.

Kagami grumbled a fine and then asked a question "Say, where's Kuroko?" A moment of silence. "Now that you mentioned it." Hyuga said "I have not heard a meep from him." Koganei started to panic. "We didn't leave him behind, did we? I mean he is an invisible little guy." Everyone slowly processed Koganei's words and frantically tried to search for him. "I'm right here." A boy with pale skin, bright blue hair and matching eyes said. He had weak presence and therefore is not always visible to the people's eye. This boy is Tetsuya Kuroko, the phantom sixth man of the Kiseki no Sedai and one of Seirin's most valuable players.

Everyone jumped a good meter when they heard his voice. "Why the hell are you in the middle of the group?" Kagami yelled at his partner and best friend. "Because captain requested me." Kuroko responded. "I did?" Hyuga asked and thought for a moment. "Oh yeah...I did." He did it to ensure the boy wasn't left behind.

Riko sighed "Anyways, let's split up into groups and get this place ready for our guests. Everyone quickly split up and went to tackle the cleaning.

….

 **Well that's the end of the first chapter. Please Rate and Review.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own KnB!**

 **There might be OCness so PLEASE FORGIVE ME!**

 **On to the story now!**

...

Prolog II

After one hour, the Seirin High Basketball team was relaxing in the lounge. They had every right to after the vigorous cleaning. The building has 3 floors, 10 bedrooms and a washroom in each room, a joint bath, a library, a cafeteria, **3** kitchens, a lounge with a large plasma TV, 3 indoor basketball courts, an outdoor basketball court and a balcony. The team had broomed and mopped the floors, dust the furniture, clean the windows, change the bedsheets for ten bedrooms, laundry and clean all the other facilities in the building. It was a lot of work for 10 guys and 1 girl and to do it in an hour was torture. Plus with a team as crazy as these mishaps were born to happen.

The reason why they had to do it in an hour was because all the other teams were coming in an hour. Afterwards, Riko told them that the teams were coming after half an hour more because of traffic. Their luggage is still with them because the rooms would be decided after the other teams showed up. Right now, the team were earning a relaxation time. Except for Kuroko and Kagami who joined them 15 minutes later.

According to Kuroko, 3 of his former teammates loves to eat after a long journey, while the other 2 spend time in the library reading and playing shogi. Kuroko with the help of Kagami was busy setting everything up for them.

The entire place was sparkling and neat. The reason was because Riko threatened that if a single speck of dust was found, she would make them do 3 times their hardest training menu for the rest of the month. "God dammit I'm tired!" Hyuga said. "We were housemaids made to do work" Izuki said. All of a sudden he perked up in excitement. "Maid...made" Izuki said writing it down on a notebook. "I got it." Everyone groaned while Hyuuga yelled "Shut up! Izuki."

After a while, everyone heard the doorbell ring and got up to answer the door. "Che, looks like they are here Kuroko." Kagami said. He turned to look at his partner and saw him asleep. "Captain, Kuroko's asleep." Kagami said. "Let him sleep." Izuki said smiling at the pale boy. "He worked harder than all of us and given his low energy that is saying a lot." Mitobe got a blanket and put it on to of Kuroko. "He must really care for his ex teammates." Koganei said. (A/N. Seirin is my most favorite team in all of KnB but I absolutely adore the idea of GoM being adorable friends to each other.)

"I find it amazing considering what those guys put him through." Kagami said grumpily. "No need to be jealous, Kagami." Hyuga said with a teasing smile. "I'm not jealous!" Kagami said with a flustered face. "Shh!" The entire team said. "You are going to wake up Kuroko." Furihata said in an urgent whisper. Kagami grumbled underneath his breath while everyone went to greet the other teams.

The first thing that happened when they opened the door was a loud "Kurokocchi!" This word was stated by none other than Kaijou's ace Ryouta Kise, who was also Kuroko's former teammate. Kise had blonde hair and matching eyes. He is also a part time model. Everyone in Seirin sighed. "Sorry, Kuroko's tired from all the cleaning so he's asleep." Kagami told Kise. "Here is a bag of snacks he left for you." Kise was disappointed that his Kurokocchi was not there to greet him but cheered up when he heard about the snacks. "Please go to the lounge and be _very quiet_." Hyuga told them. Everyone was confused but obliged the words of their host. "Thank you for having us." Their captain Kasamatsu told Hyuuga. "It's our pleasure." Hyuuga replied.

The next team to great them were the orange team or Shutoku. "I don't see Kuroko." This man was Shintarou Midorima. He was also Kuroko's former teammate and vice-captain. "Not that I care, nanodhayo." (A/N I totally spelled that wrong and probably will from now on.) 'Whatever you say, you tsundere' was the thought that ran through everyone's mind. "Kuroko is sleeping because he's tired from all the cleaning." Kiyoshi said with a smile. "He left you this piece of paper." He gave Midorima the paper. "Everyone else please head to the lounge and be _quiet._ " Shutoku compiled and left while Ootsubo said "Thank you for having us and long time no see." Hyuga nodded "Long time no see to you too."

Next team was a _bit_ louder than the rest. It was Touou and as soon as they welcomed the door a loud "Testsuuuu-kun!" heard. A pink-haired, pretty girl excitedly came through the door. This is Satsuki Momoi. She was Kuroko's former team's manager. Now she is the manager of Touou academy. She also has the biggest crush on Kuroko. "Kuroko's not here. He's in the lounge." Izuki told her. Momoi immediately ran to the lounge. Everyone sighed while Izuki jabbed Kagami. He reluctantly gave Izuki a bag. "Aomine, this is for you." Izuki gave this bag to a tan, blue-haired and matching eyes player. "What's this?" Aomine asked. He was Kuroko's former partner and teammate. "Kuroko said you might be hungry. So here is some sweets for you." Daiki Aomine raised his eyebrows but accepted the bag. "Please head to the lounge and be _quiet._ " Everyone left and Imayoshi said "Thank you for having us and we are sorry for any trouble we cause." He bowed to Hyuga. "No problem." Hyuga said. 'His attitude right now really does not suit his personality.'

The group after was huge. Yosen group of huge players were next and as soon as Kagami saw his big brother Tatsuya Himuro, he gave a huge smile and yelled "Tatsuya!" Himuro gave an equally happy smile "It's good to see you little brother." The two did a high-five. "Oh, it's Kaga-chin." A tall purple-haired giant said "Where is Kuro-chin?" This player is Atsushi Murasakibara. He is also one of Kuroko's former teammates. "Kaga-chin!?" Kagami exclaimed. "Atsushi shortens peoples names and adds chin at the end. That is now he shows respect." Himuro said. "I don't want it!" Kagami exclaimed. 'Wait a second this seems familiar.' Kagami's thought went back to the first time Kise called him Kagamicchi. 'I knew it.' he thought 'All the Generation of Miracles are Generation of freaks.' Murasakibara was getting impatient. "Where is Kuro-chin?" he asked again. "Kuroko is tired so he's resting." Hyuga told the giant. "I see." the giant replied. There was a moment of silence. "Who are you?" Murasakibara asked Hyuga. Hyuga's eyebrow twitched. "His captain" he said. "Now everyone please _quietly_ go to the lounge." Kiyoshi showed a bag in front of Murasakibara. "What's this?" the giant asked. "Snacks" Kiyoshi answered. Murasakibara's eyes lit up like a kid and he accepted the bag. "Thanks for having us and let's get along." Okumura said and slapped Hyuga on the back. This caused Hyuga to stumble a little. "Yeah, let's." He replied breathlessly.

The last group to come was intimidating. It was none other than Rakuzan and the one leading them is the none other than Seijuro Akashi, Kuroko's former captain. "Tetsuya is not here?" Akashi asked. "Kuroko is tired from cleaning so he is resting." This time Kouki Furihata answered even though he was extremely nervous. "I see." Akashi said. "He left this note for you." Furihata added. Akashi took the note and went inside. "Thank you for having us and please guide my team to where they have to be." Akashi bowed to Hyuga. Hyuga's brain short-circuited. 'Akashi...THE Akashi just bowed to me! What...WHAT!?' he thought. "Ah...yeah...no problem" Hyuga stuttered. He turned to the Rakuzan team. "Alright everyone to the lounge _quietly._ " He said. With that, the rest of the of Seirin and Rakuzan went to join the other teams.

 **Well that's the end of the second chapter. This chapter is so long. Sorry for taking a long 't believe Japan delayed KnB finale! Bear with me folks the main story is coming but I have to keep the story consistent. Please Rate and Review.**


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own KNB!

Chapter 1:

Honestly speaking, Midorima would like nothing better than to be at the library. To his delight, this place has one. He wanted to go to the library at once but he met Akashi along the way. "Don't you think it would be wise to be at the lounge." Akashi asked him. So here he is with the rest of the team.

By the time Seirin and Rakuzan got to the lounge, they saw everyone was waiting outside. "Why are you guys outside? Hyuga asked. "The door is locked." Kise said. "What" the seirin team asked. "It's locked" Wakamatsu replied. "How?" Hyuga said. "Who was last person to leave the room." Kagami raised. "That would be me and I closed the door as well."

There was a moment of silence. "Bakagami!" the entire Seirin team shouted. "Huh! Why?" Kagami exclaimed. "The door locks as soon as you close the door. We told you this while we were cleaning up." Izuki told him. "Huh..." Kagami said. Everyone sighed. "Can't expect anything less from a Bakagami" Aomine said. Kagami was about to argue back when something hit him hard on the head. "Don't you dare start arguing with him when we are in this mess because of you." Hyuuga yelled at him. The other teams blanked at the scene. 'This is the team we lost to?' They all thought simultaneously.

"Riko is going to kill us." Kiyoshi said. "Yeah" Koganei said. "Not only did she told us not to be late, she also told us not to make the other teams late as well." The Seirin team were waiting for their doom in despair when the door opened. "Hello" a soft polite voice said. It was Kuroko! He had woken up from his sleep and opened the door when he heard the commotion. "Kuroko!" The entire Seirin team cried. "You're the best." Kuroko tilted his head in confusion. 'That is kinda...cute' everyone else except for Kuroko's current and former team thought. The Kiseki no sedai gave their teammates a warning look. Meanwhile Seirin explained the situation to Kuroko. "You really can't focus on anything except basketball, Kagami-kun." Kuroko told his light. "Shut up!" Kagami yelled.

A loud "Kurokocchi" and "Tetsu-kun" was heard. The next thing everyone knows, Kuroko was in the ground being hugged to death by a blond and a pinkette. "Long time...Kise-kun...Momoi-san...can't breathe." Kuroko said breathlessly. "Oi! You two!" Aomine shouted "Let Tetsu breath." Wakamatsu sighed "I'll never understand what she sees in him." Moriyama nodded "We don't understand Kise's obsession either." Kise and Momoi immediately got off of Kuroko. Afterwards, the team head to lounge to wait for their coaches.

...

"Looks like everyone is here." Riko said as she entered the lounge through the other door with the other coaches. She turned to address the six teams. "As you all know, this is a joint training camp between our schools. This camp is made to improve you as an athlete and to improve your relationships with your teammates and other teams. After all, basketball is a team sport therefore good relationships are vital." Everyone nodded in agreement. Masako-yosen's coach-addressed the group next. "With that being said, this will not just be simple training." The other teams looked confused. "There are plenty of facilities and every team has a unique training style. We will incorporating those styles into this program." Masako explained. "Sounds exciting" Imayoshi stated. Nakatani addressed the group this time. "One last matter, we received these DVD's and after cross-checking we confirmed that whatever is in here means no harm." Everyone perked up. "According to the lender of these DVD's, theses videos will help you either improve as a team or as a person or both. So you all will be watching these DVDs together." Harasawa took over. "The coaches have other matters. You will be watching after practice. Today, you will watch once your room has been assigned."

Takeuchi finished off by saying "Here are your rooms."

 **Room 1: Akashi Seijurou, Midorima Shintarou, Murasakibara Atsushi, Aomine Daiki, Kise Ryouta & Kuroko Tetsuya.**

Everyone was quiet as they let the names sink in. "HOLY COW!" Everyone shouted simultaneously except for the the Kiseki no Sedai and their sixth man. 'Just like old times.' They thought with an equal nostalgic and sad face.

 **Room 2: Kagami Taiga, Koji Kobori, Kazunari Takao, Himuro Tatsuya, Mayuzumi Chihiro and Sakurai Ryo**

 **Room 3: Hyuga Junpei, Yukio Kasamatsu, Otsubo Taisuke, Imayoshi Shoichi, Okamura Kenichi, Mibuchi Reo**

 **Room 4: Izuki Shun, Moriyama Yoshitaka, Kotaro Hayama, Miyaji Kiyoshi, Susa Yoshinori, Fukai Kensuke**

 **Room 5: Kiyoshi Teppei, Hayakawa Mitsuhiro, Kimura Shinsuke, Wakamatsu Kosuke, Liu Wei, Nebuya Eikichi**

Everyone was quieter on the other rooms.

"Room 6 is for Momoi-kun, me and Masako-san" Riko Said "Room 7 for the other coaches. Room 8, 9, 10 are left for spares. Rest assure, there is plenty of space for all of you. Now watch this DVD."

….

All the teams were sitting in front of the TV as the DVD began to play.

 **The screen starts by showing a basketball tournament. "The Teikou Middle school Basketball club.**

Everyone looked at the GoM, Momoi and Kuroko while said people blinked.

 **An incredible strong team with over one hundred members and 3 consecutive championships.**

 **The kiseki no sedai and momoi were shown with their respective color. "Amongst their brilliant record, the generation of five prodigies were known as the 'Kiseki no Sedai."**

'Is this about them/us?' everyone thought.

" **However there was a strange rumor concerning the GoM."**

"There were plenty of rumors about us." Kise said. All of his former teammates agreed. "What rumors?" Kagami asked. "That some of us were gay for each other." Kise replied "It's actually quite amusing":Akashi added. "Maybe for you but I just found it disturbing." Midorima replied. No one knew what to say to that.

" **Despite being relatively unknown and lacking a game record, there was one more members recognized by the prodigies."**

Everyone looked at Kuroko. 'It's definitely not a rumour.' They all thought.

 **Kuroko was shown in his Teikou uniform. "A phantom sixth man."**

"This is very personal." Kuroko said with a frown. "I'm sure whatever they are showing is not that personal and even if it was, I'm sure it is meant to help us." Kise reassured his former mentor. Kuroko nodded "Thank you, Kise-Kun."

 **THE Opening…**

 **While it was playing there was various comments going around. Here is the order…**

"Why is called Kuroko's Basketball?" Kuroko asked "What's so special about me anyway?" Everyone sighed. "Tetsuya you are a unique player. How many times do I have to tell you to have some self-confidence." Akashi lectured him."It's true I can do things others can't but it's only because others can do things I can't, Akashi-kun" Kuroko told him. The GoM sighed. 'It seems our boost Kuroko/Kuro-chin/Kurokocchi/Tetsu/Tetsuya's confidence level mission is still active' They thought.

"Boy, we sure were weak" kagami said remembering the scene where his coach and seniors were running way ahead of him.

"That's after the Inter-High preliminaries" Izuki said at the scene where Seirin was standing at the walk path.

"Why are standing in the rail-way? That is dangerous." Hyuga lectured Kuroko and Kagami. "Kagami-kun's idea" Kuroko said. "Oi!" Kagami yelled at him.

Aomine smirked at him passing Kagami. "I wouldn't be smirking if I were you." Wakamatsu stated "He beat you after all" Aomine scowled "I'll get him next time.

"Those three's give nothing but heart attack." Izuki said. As he watch Midorima do his infamous threes. Everyone who faced those three nodded.

Aomine couldn't help but feel sad and jealous at Kuroko's and Kagami's fist-bump. Momoi gave him an understanding smile, which he ignored.

Seirin cheered at Kagami's dunk. "Nice dunk, Kagami." Koganei said "Thanks" he replied with a big smile.

Everyone cheered once the opening ended. "This really makes me pump up." Fukai said. Everyone nodded.

 **That is all for the opening.**

….

 **Alright everyone that is it for now. The rest is coming soon so stay tuned! Please R &R and ask me any questions if you have any. **


	4. Chapter 4

It seems people like my fic so far so thank you so much for that.

Also there is a question regarding pairings. I am not very good at writing romantic scenes. At the very most this fic will contain friendship. Strong friendship like the anime and implementation of pairings. But that's all. At least that is what I am trying to do.

I DON'T OWN KNB!

Chapter 2: Episode 1 Cont.

 **The episode started with Seirin Highschool.**

"That's our school." Tsuchida said.

 **New freshman are being scooped up by various clubs. "Basketbll! Basketball, how would you like to join the basketball club?" Koganei said.**

"That's me!" Koganei exclaimed with a shocked face. "There's Izuki and Mitobe."

"Could this DVD be about Seirin?" Reo asked "I don't think so." Akashi replied. "The title sequence said this show is called 'Kuroko's Basketball'. In other words, this DVD is most likely the story of Kuroko and Seirin from the start of their journey and eventually winning the Winter Cup." Momoi was looking through the case and found something interesting. "Guys I found a piece of paper inside the DVD case." She said to everyone. "What does it say, Satsuki?" Akashi asked. Momoi read the note.

 _As expected of Akashi-san, he is right._ Akashi raised an eyebrow at that statement. _I'm sure everyone was amazed and impressed at Seirin's performance during the winter cup._ Everyone nodded while Seirin smiled sheepishly. _I figured you guys would appreciate if you knew the story behind what they did and why were they willing to risk so much in every match they do. As for Seirin..._ Seirin team perked up when they heard their names. _Self-reflection is important take this chance to see where you can improve and what you need to overcome. The same advice can be applied to the other team._ Everyone nodded seriously.

 _Best regards._

"Let's get back to watching." Kasamatsu said. Everyone turned to look at the T.V.

 **Not a lot of people seem interested.**

"You seem to have a hard time recruiting people." Otsubo observed. "We are a newly formed club and people didn't expect much considering all the veteran schools there are." Hyuga told him.

 **"Koganei you can't be serious." Izuki told him. "Then how am I supposed to say it?" Koganei asked him. Izuki does a horrible pun.**

Everyone gave a blank look except for Hayama who laughed and Izuki who smiled.

 **"I've had enough of your jokes." Koganei said.**

Seirin nodded in agreement.

 **"Mitobe make sure they can hear you." Koganei said to his silent partner. Mitobe nodded and continued handing out the fliers silently. "You're not going to say anything are you?" Koganei said with a wary smile. A guy with pale blue hair walked by him but Koganei ignored him and talked to the guy behind him.**

"Sorry, Kuroko." Koganei said with a sheepish smile. Kuroko waved it off as if he was used to it and it is an everyday experience. In his case, it was.

 **Kuroko kept on walking while reading until he stopped in front of a map. He looked at the map to find the basketball table.**

 **The scene changed to Riko and Hyuuga who were sitting at the basketball table. "Hmm" Riko said "A few more would be nice." Hyuga was drinking a cup of water. "We barely managed to scrape ten." He said.**

Everyone was scandalized by the minimum of people signing up especially the GoM. It's why none of them could understand why their teammate wanted to go there in the first place.

 **"It's alright." Riko assured him. "We are a new team who is just getting started. All we need to do is win the Inter-High and Winter Cup and we'll have plenty of sign-ups next year."**

Easier said than done was what everyone thought.

 **"Are you casually putting pressure on your captain?" Hyuga asked with a wary smile. "Were you always this delicate, Hyuga-kun?" Riko countered.**

The captains of the other teams gave Hyuga an understanding smile. They were always forced to go with the coach's flow. Sometimes it wasn't the best moment for them. Everyone else laughed with Hyuga glaring at them.

 **Hyuga gave a defeated sigh. "I'll do my best." He said sulking into the table. "I wonder how the recruitment is going? If only they could bring someone promising, that would be..." Riko's stopped talking as someone came to the table. the screen showed a crying Koganei.**

"You nearly gave me heart attack, Kagami!" Koganei said with a pout. "Sorry" Kagami said with a sheepish smile.

 **"What?" Riko said. She looked up and the screen showed Kagami's face. "Is this the basketball club?" Kagami asked with an intimidating voice. Riko and Hyuga were gaping at him.**

Seirin laughed. "Kagami being intimidating...looking back at it...it's a little ridiculous." Izuki said while laughing. Kagami grumbled while everyone was smirking.

 **"Yeah." Riko said 'Who is this guy? He has an intensity of a wild tiger.'**

Kagami blinked "Coach did not say that." Hyuga nodded. "She didn't say it but she probably did think that." Izuki blinked "So not only does this thing recorded what we did and say, it also recorded our thoughts?" Imayoshi nodded "It seems so...well this just got even more interesting." Everyone else was interested in the idea of hearing other's thoughts yet nervous of what they were going to learn.

 **"I want to join." Kagami said. He took a seat and laid a Koganei at the table. Riko gave him a form and started talking about Seirin's basketball club but Kagami interrupted her. "I don't care." he said, after drinking the cup full of water Riko gave him."**

Kuroko looked at his partner and jabbed him at the sides. Kagami yelped in pain. "You!" He shouted. The Kiseki no sedai and Momoi smiled 'Kurokocchi/Kuroko/Kuro-chin/Tetsu-kun/Tetsu/Tetsuya doesn't hesitate to hit those that deserves it.'

 **"I'm going after I filled out my name." Kagami continued. Riko looked at his form. "You don't have a reason to join?" Riko asked. "Not really" Kagami responded "Basketball is the same no matter where you play it in Japan." He tossed the paper cup the same way as a basketball and left. Koganei looked at Kagami "He's terrifying. Is he really a first year student?" Izuki and Mitobe showed up. "He's one in a million." Izuki said. Koganei gave them a surprised look. "Where were you guys hiding?" He accused them.**

"We were not hiding." Izuki said "We were just slowly following the 2 of you."

 **"Kagami Taiga" Hyuga said reading the form. "He's from America. He must have learned from the source."**

"They sure are focusing a lot on Bakagami." Aomine said. "Well he is Tetsu-kun's current light." Momoi told him. "So am I" Aomine said with a frown. "Yeah... _former_ light." Imayoshi stated.

 **"I'm sure he'll be extraordinary." Riko said. "Yo" Koganei said. Everyone looked at him. "You forgot this one."**

"It's probably Kuro-chin's." Murasakibara said looking at Seirin. Seirin nodded.

 **"Oh sorry." Riko said. She picked up the form. "Let's see, Kuroko Tetsuya." She looked at the form closely. "Huh, I was here the entire time but I don't remember his face."**

The GoM sighed while Aomine and Kise face-palmed. "How many times do we need to tell you to introduce yourself in situations like those, Tetsuya. " Akashi lectured Kuroko again. "I'm sorry." Kuroko bowed "I forgot." Midorima twitched. "No, you are not sorry." He said "We give you the same lecture, you apologize and then do the same mistake again." Aomine joined in "Admit it, Tetsu you are purposely doing that to avoid attention." Kuroko said nothing. The GoM sighed again 'It's because of his confidence level. We really need to boost it up.' Everyone else just stared at GoM. Who knew that they worried about their 6th man so much.

 **The screen focus to a neatly written 'Teiko Middle School'. Riko looked at the paper closely as if she didn't believe what she read. "What's wrong?" Hyuga asked. "H-He's from Teikou Basketball club." Riko gasped.**

The other school laughed at Seirin's reaction. They remembered the day when they found out one of the miracles was joining their team. Everyone was shocked but they thought it was expected since they were veteran schools. But for a no name school like Seirin to get a someone from the miracles...they probably they were dreaming.

 **"Teikou? You mean THE Teikou?" The others exclaimed.**

"Is there any other?" Kise asked while tilting his head.

 **"Yep and if he's a first year that must mean he is one of those Generation of Miracles." Riko said excitedly.**

"Sorry" Kuroko said "I'm probably not what you were expecting." Hyuga raised an eyebrow. "It's true that you were not what we were expecting. But that is no reason for you to apologize." Izuki nodded "Yeah, you and Kagami were the best things possible. The two of together are really cute as a couple." Everyone went silent. "Shut...UP Idukki!" Hyuuga yelled. At the same time Kagami yelled "We are not a couple!" Kuroko was frowning. "Kagami-kun may swing that way but I don't." Kagami turned to look at his partner in shock. "The HELL, Kuroko!?" He said incredulously.

Meanwhile, the other teams were laughing at the looks of GoM and Momoi faces. The look on their faces showed that they were still registering what Izuki just said. 'I'll just pretend I never heard anything.' They thought at the same time.

 **"Generation of Miracles..." Hyuga said "That famous group!?"**

The GoM went from shock to smug in one second. Kuroko and Momoi sighed. You would think after losing they would be a little less smug, but nooooo.

 **Riko pulled her hair in frustration. "Why can't I remember the face of such a golden egg? On top of that, a guy from America. This year's freshman are crazy."**

All the seniors in the team nodded in agreement.

 **It showed Kuroko walking behind Kagami. Neither was paying attention to the other.**

 **The scene changed to show Seirin's gym now. It showed all the freshman lining up. "Alright, all the freshmen are here." Koganei said.**

All the other school blinked at the small amount of people lined up.

 **"Hey isn't that manager cute?" Furihata asked Kawahara pointing to Riko. "She's a second year, right?" Kawahara asked. "If only she was a little sexier." Furihata said.**

"You're lucky Riko didn't hear you." Hyuga told them.

 **"You're wrong, Idiot." Hyuga said hitting the two freshmen.**

 **"I'm Aida Riko, the basketball coach. Nice to meet you." Riko announced.**

 **"What!?" The freshmen gaped at her. "It's not him?" Furihata asked pointing to an old guy sitting on the chair by the wall. "That's our advisor, Takada-sensei." Riko said. "Your joking." Someone said.**

 **"Now that you are you are acquainted, you guys...take your shirts off." Riko said commandingly.** "Whaaat?" The other teams asked. "Just watch" Seirin told them.

 **"What!? Why!?" Was yelled out. Riko just smiled.**

 **The screen showed the freshmen shirtless with Riko walking down the row pausing momentarily. "Your ability to move instantaneously is slow. I bet you do 50 side jumps in one minute. You'll have to do better for this team." She said.**

"How would she know that?" Moriyama asked. Seirin pointed to the screen.

 **"Seriously. She's right" A guy said "How does she know that?" Another guy asked.**

 **"Her dad is a trainer." Hyuga said. The scene changed to show little Riko with her dad. "Collecting data and creating training menus are a speciality for her." Hyuga explained.** The other schools were impressed that Seirin has someone of such calibre. Maybe they underestimated this team a little too much.

 **The scene focused on Riko eyes and showed a bunch of stats as Hyuga said "When she looks at your body she sees your physical stats as numbers."**

Even though some people knew about Riko's ability, they couldn't help but be amazed especially with the way the DVD showed it.

 **"I wouldn't expect anything less from a coach. Hyuga said as Riko stared at Kagami. "What?" Kagami asked bluntly. 'What's this?' Riko thought. 'All his numbers are through the roof'**

Kagami smiled smugly so Kuroko decided to bring down his ego just a bit. "Coach wasn't half as impressed with you as she was with the Generation of Miracles." This made Kagami scowled.

 **'These aren't the values of a normal high school boy.' Riko continued to think. 'I can't see his potential. I've never seen someone with such raw talent.' Hyuga interrupted her thoughts. "Coach, what are you staring at?"**

"Jealous Hyuga?" Izuki asked with a teasing smile. "Shut up" Hyuga said with a slight blush. (A.N. yes I am a Hyuga/Riko fan sorry Teppei/Riko)

 **"Sorry...um"**

 **"You looked at all of them. Kagami was the last one."**

"What about Kurokocchi/Tetsu?" Aomine and Kise asked.

 **"Is Kuroko-kun here?" Riko asked. "Oh, that kid from Teikou?" Hyuga asked.**

 **'I thought I would be able to pick up on someone that strong right away.' "Guess he's not here." Riko said. "Let's start practice." Like a phantom Kuroko appeared "Um, excuse me" he said "I'm Kuroko." His sudden appearance caused Riko to yell in shock and Hyuga to exclaim "How long have you been there?" Kuroko looked at Hyuga. "Since the beginning." Kuroko stated his trademark line.**

Everyone chuckled at Seirin's reaction while Seirin smiled fondly at their phantom.

 **'He was in front of me and I still did not see him.' Riko thought still terrified. 'Wait, did he say he's Kuroko? What? He's practically invisible.'**

 **"This guy is part of the generation of miracles?" Koganei asked in disbelief. "He couldn't have been a regular."**

 **"Of course not." Hyuga said "Right Kuroko."**

The said two grimaced. They were about to apologize when Kuroko said. "Don't apologize. It's an everyday thing in my life." Everyone still felt bad.

 **"I've played in games." Kuroko told them. "Right." Hyuga said smiling as if he didn't hear him. "What?" Hyuga asked. "What?" Koganei repeated. "What!?" Everyone exclaimed. 'Generation of Miracles? What's that?' Kagami thought.**

 **"Take off your shirt." Riko told him. "What?" Kuroko said "Okay."**

 **The screen cut to show Riko on the bus thinking. 'Who is he? His stats are way below average. Not to mention he's almost at his limit. There is no way he could be a regular on such a strong team.'**

The GoM glared at Riko's thought. They always hated how people would belittle their sixth man. The only reason why they never lashed out was because Kuroko never cared. But it still didn't stop Aomine. He was the most protective out of all of them when it came to Kuroko. "Tetsu had every right to be a part of our team." Aomine fiercely said. Kuroko gave a small smile to his former light which calmed Aomine down.

 **The screen showed Kagami playing street basketball. Kagami was going for the basket but he missed because he noticed someone. The ball went to Kuroko who caught the ball with a blank face. "When did you get here?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "Nice to meet you." Kuroko said ignoring Kagami's question.**

"You never answer my questions." Kagami grumbled at his partner.

 **"What the hell are you doing here?"**

 **"Why are you by yourself?"**

Kagami just huffed and muttered something about ignoring questions.

 **"Nothing, I am not doing anything."**

"See, I answer your questions." Kagami said complained. "Kagami-kun is very childish with very silly things." Kuroko responded. Kagami glared while everyone snorted.

 **They stared at each other. Kagami broke the silence. "I've been living in America since my second year of middle school. I've been appalled by how low the standards are over here. I'm not playing basketball for fun. I've heard all about you and the supposedly strong GoM." Kagami challenged Kuroko to a match. Kuroko accepted his challenge. Kagami won with no challenge. (A/N Sorry I'll do better in the future.)**

"Why did you do that?" Kagami asked."I wanted to see something." Kuroko said.

 **Kagami was furious at the easy win. He told Kuroko to quit playing.**

Kagami cringed as the GoM glared at him.

 **"I don't accept that." Kuroko said in response. "What?" Kagami said. "I don't share your opinion. I love basketball. I don't care who is strong or weak." Kuroko lectured him.**

"The first of the many talks Kuroko gives Kagami." Kiyoshi said with an amused smile. "Yep." Seirin stated in unison. "First they make us a couple and now they make us a parent and child." Kagami grumbled. "It's your fault." Kuroko told him. "How the hell is this my fault!?" Kagami yelled. "Because Kagami-kun is a bakagami." Kuroko said.

 **"I'm not like you. I'm a shadow." Kuroko said.**

 **The scene changed to the gym. "What? A mini-game." A freshman said.** "A match?" Kasamatsu said looking at Hyuga. "It helps us determine the level the freshmen are at." Hyuga said.

 **The freshmen expressed their nervousness as they list of the senior's accomplishments.**

The Seirin seniors smiled at the praise.

 **"There's nothing to be afraid of." Kagami said with a smile. "It's better to have strong opponents rather than weak.**

Kuroko jabbed Kagami at the sides. Kagami yelped. "The hell was that for!?" Kuroko shrugged "Just because..."

 **'Let's see what these rookies can do.' Riko thought.**

Everyone leaned in to watch the match. "Who do you think will win?" Hayama asked excitedly. "Who knows?" Akashi said. "You." Mayuzumi countered. Akashi gave a mysterious smile.

 **Riko started the match with a tip off. Kagami got the ball and passed it to Kawahara. Kawahara dribbled the ball down the court and passed it to Kagami over a senior's head. Kagami dunked the ball.**

The freshmen from Seirin except Kuroko gave a small whoop.

 **"That dunk was unbelievable." Kawahara said. 'They're better than I thought.' Riko thought.**

"To think we found that amazing." Koganei said. "We sure came a long way."

 **After a few dunks from Kagami, the screen showed the score 11-8 with freshmen leading. 'Shit, the kid still has me on the edge.' Kagami thought. Kuroko had the ball but it was quickly stolen.**

Kuroko was sipping a vanilla milkshake (A/N the hell did that come from!?) as he watched the match. He noticed the others were staring. "Yes?" He asked. "We have two questions for you." Kagami said. "One, the hell are you hiding your talent for and two...where did you get that milkshake?" Kuroko shrugged "Didn't need my help so I didn't bother. As for the milkshake, there is a maji nearby so I went to get a shake." Hyuga looked bemused. "When did you...How did you...Never mind." This just increased everyone's belief that Kuroko has a vanilla milkshake radar installed in his brain.

 **'He can't play shit." Kagami thought as he stole the ball from Mitobe 'Guys who are all talk' he went for a dunk, 'pisses me off more than anything' he scored.**

 **"So high." Furihata said. "Nothing can stop Kagami." Kawahara said. "I think it's about time we put those freshmen in their place." Hyuga said. "It's on." Izuki said.**

The seniors in the room was also getting excited, especially Kiyoshi who was not there to witness this.

 **The scene changed to show Kagami being tripled teamed by Hyuga, Izuki and Koganei. They stopped Kagami from moving. "They're planning to stop Kagami." Kawaha added. "They double teaming even when he doesn't have the ball." Fukada added. Kagami looked frustrated as the seniors continued to score. The screen showed the new score of 15-31 with seniors leading.**

The seniors did a small high-five.

 **The first years were tired and sweaty. "They're good."**

 **"I've had enough." Furihata said. Kagami picked Furi up and said "Enough? What the hell are you talking about!?" Kagami yelled. Before Before could harm Furi, Kuroko went behind Kagami and hit him on the knee with his knee. The unexpected hit caused Kagami to drop Furi. "Calm down." Kuroko said. "You bastard." Kagami said slowly as black aura surrounds him. The freshmen trio yelled in terror.**

Everyone laughed at the scene. "Seirin sure is an entertaining team." Imayoshi said. "Especially Kuroko and Kagami." Miyagi added.

 **"Looks like they're fighting." Koganei said. Izuki looks surprised. "What's wrong?" Koganei asked. "Was he in the game?" Izuki said. "Who? Kuroko? Not sure." Koganei said. Meanwhile, Kagami started throwing punches at Kuroko, terrifying the freshmen more. Kuroko easily dodged all punches.**

"I love how you guys are just watching the entire thing and still talk like it's an everyday thing." Hayama said laughing with a few others. Izuki shrugged "Kuroko looked like he knew how to handle it."

 **'Even I forgot and I am the referee.' Riko thought. She gasped 'How long has he been playing?' The scene changed to show Kuroko. He was moving his wrist. "Excuse me, could you please pass the ball to me." He said. "Huh!?" Fukada looked confused.**

The generation of miracles smirked. 'It's about time.'

 **'What can you do with the ball once you get it?' Fukada said. He passed the ball to Kuroko. 'At least don't let them take it.' As the ball made to Kuroko, everyone's movement slowed down and it showed Kuroko observing his surroundings. Then he quickly passed the ball to an unsuspecting Furi. He caught the ball in suprise and made the shot.**

Nebuya whistled. "I guess I should say as expected."

 **"It went...what...how did that pass go through? Hyuga was stumped while the second years were completely baffaled. 'Why do I feel so uneasy? Is something unbelievable is happening?' Riko thought.**

Akashi smirked. 'Everyone always had the same reaction whenever they watched Tetsuya play.' He thought. As Kuroko's former captain, Akashi was very proud at _his_ phantom's accomplishment.

 **Kawahara had the ball. He noticed Kuroko was ready, so he passed the ball. The ball ended up in Fukuda's hand who was surprised like Furi. "Go for it, shoot!" Kagami said with excitement. Fukada shot and scored. The screen kept on showing passes coming from various angles and the freshmen continuously scoring. "They are passing and scoring before we even realize it." Izuki said. "What on earth is going on?" Koganei asked.**

The entire room was just silent. They were just so captivated by the game. The way the players were shown, their thoughts, the music and just plain excitement. Man! If a minigame is this exciting, how exciting will an actual game be?

 **The screen replayed the various passes but this time it showed Kuroko making the passes. Riko started to explain Kuroko's ability. 'He's the invisible regular at Teikou who excelled at passing. I have heard rumors about him but I didn't think he actually exists. The Generation of Miracles phantom sixth man.' Riko said in amazement.**

"You weren't the only one who thought that Kuroko was a rumor." Everyone sans the GoM said.

 **Kuroko passed the ball to Kagami who scored. 'Crap, I got caught up with Kuroko's passes. The score was 36-37, seniors leading**. **The ball was stolen from Koganei by Fukada. He passed to Kawahara, who passed to Kuroko. Kuroko dribbled the ball to the opponent's net. He shoot the ball but missed. The freshmen started to get distressed. Kagami came took the ball and dunked. "This is why I hate the weak, you are supposed to make the shoot." Kuroko was smiling.**

The freshmen cheered for their victory.

 **The scene changed to Kagami getting food from Maji.**

"Holy Hell! How much can you eat?" Majority of the people asked. Kagami had a question mark on top of his head.

 **He took a seat not noticing Kuroko. He was about to take a bite when he noticed Kuroko. Kuroko was drinking a vanilla milkshake. "Hello" he said.**

The Kuroko in the room was also drinking a vanilla milkshake. Wait...What? "How many milkshakes did you drink?" Kagami asked him. "3" Kuroko replied. "Tetsuya, how many times do I have to tell you no more than 1 milkshake?" Akashi reprimanded. "But it's good" Kuroko said. The GoM facepalmed. "Your are as bad as Murasakibara is with sweets." Midorima said.

 **"What are you doing here? Why are you here?"**

 **"I was here first. I like this place milkshake."**

 **"Go somewhere else. " Kagami told Kuroko. "No" Kuroko said. "If people sees us they'll think we are friends." Kagami.**

"First of all, what makes you think people will see me. And what's wrong with being friends with me?" Kuroko challenged Kagami. "Sorry" Kagami said with a sheepish smile.

 **"This is my usual hangout."**

 **Kagami sighed and gave Kuroko a burger. "Here, I don't like weak guys but you deserve one." Kuroko took the burger "Thanks."**

 **The scene changed to the two of walking on the street. "Just how strong are the Generation of Miracles? If I played them how would I do?" Kagami asked. "You'd be destroyed instantly." Kuroko said.**

"You're bluntness astounds me." Kagami said sarcastically. Everyone else laughed.

 **"Do you have to put it like that!?"**

 **"The five prodigies have gone off to play for their own schools. Only one will be at the very top."**

"Why did you do that?" Takao asked. The GoM didn't answer while Seirin grimaced as they remembered Kuroko's story. The others schools noticed it. "You know?" Otsubo asked. Kiyoshi gave an uncomfortable nod "Kuroko told us before the Winter Cup finals." The GoM's raised their eyebrows. Though they don't show it, they have noticed Seirin being a bit more cautious whenever Kuroko talks to his former teammates. Now they know why.

 **Kagami smiled. "That's great. I will beat the Generation of Miracles and become the number one player in Japan."**

Kagami smiled in satisfaction. He accomplished his goals but the games were so exciting that he wants to play all over again.

 **"I don't think that is possible." Kuroko said.**

Kagami glared at him while everyone else laughed some more.

 **"Hey!"**

 **"I wouldn't know if you had special talent or not but from what I saw you wouldn't even reach their feet."**

The GoM smiled. They were happy to hear Kuroko thought so highly of them.

 **"You can't do it alone. I will be the shadow to your light. I will make you the number one player in Japan." Kagami smiled "Look who's talking. Do what you want." Kuroko smiled "I'll do my best." The scene went black.**

"That's it I guess." Kagami said.

 **(A.N. This section is a little story I made based on the ending cards.)**

 **The screen turned on again. There was writing on the screen. It said after every episode I will show you a small scene. It can change from a scene in the future or in the past. Please enjoy.**

 **The screen showed Kuroko lying on a bench. He was bouncing the ball from one hand to another. As he laid there he thought about his past with the GoM and Ogiwara.**

Kuroko grimaced while the GoM shifted uncomfortably.

 **He thought off all the matches that had happened. The very latest match was Kaijou vs. Touou where Aomine and Kise faced off. 'What I want to accomplish won't be easy...' He thought trailing off at the end. Kagami was walking by when he noticed Kuroko on lying on the bench. He sat next to Kuroko, put his hand on the ball with the base of his palm touching the tip of Kuroko's finger keeping the position of the ball in place.**

" **Yo" Kagami said. Kuroko tilted his head to look up. "Kagami-kun" he said. 'What I want to accomplish won't be easy, but at least I am not alone.'**

 **The screen paused at the scene and at the bottom right corner a "See you soon" was written.**

Everyone in the room looked at Kuroko and Kagami. It was silent for while before Kagami raised his fist for a fist bump. Kuroko complied. "Excuse me" Aomine said to his team and left the room.

DONE! FINALLY! I am sorry! I will try better in the future. Please R&R! I would appreciate it. 


	5. Chapter 5

I hope everyone enjoyed the last chapter. That chapter took forever to write. I bet the rest are like that too. But I will definitely try my best. Anyway let's get to the next chapter. I forgot to mention but in my fic I am letting Akashi keep calling everyone in his year by their given name. So Kuroko is Tetsuya but Mayuzumi would be Mayuzumi-senpai. Why? Because I like the idea of how all the GoM each have their own way of addressing Kuroko. I DON'T OWN KNB!

 **Chapter 3: Episode 2**

Aomine was dousing his head with water. He has not been feeling the best for a while. Ever since he lost to Seirin, Aomine realized what a jerk he has been. He realized that all those times are going to be shown again making him realize just how much of a bastard he was.

On top of that, the friendship between Kagami and Tetsu was also badly hitting him on the gut. It was all to similar to his and Kuroko's friendship. Especially the Magi scene. Aomine brought a lot of food. Kuroko shows up scaring him. Kuroko explains he likes the milkshake and then Aomine gives him burger. Lastly, Kuroko responds with a thanks. (A.N. there is an OVA that describes the relationship between Kuroko and Aomine. One of the scenes, shows what I described)

The only difference was that Kagami didn't destroy their friendship. That fact has been slowly killing him. The magi scene to the very end scene has been doing nothing but slapping Aomine in the face.

"Aomine-kun" a soft voice called his name.

Aomine jumped. "Tetsu!? Why are you here?"

Kuroko stared blankly at him. "The next episode is about to start so I came to get you."

Aomine sighed. "I see. Thanks."

Aomine grabbed the towel and started to dry his head. Kuroko showed something to Aomine. It was a can of pocari.

"You still like to drink this after you take a rinse, right?" Kuroko said. Aomine took the can. His eyes were hidden in the towel so Kuroko couldn't see his eyes. If he did, he would notice Aomine's eyes were misty. The two of them walked back to the room. Inside were the coaches.

Everyone explained what they saw, the coaches were amazed. They wanted to watch as well but sadly they had work.

The next episode started to play.

 **The screen showed Seirin highschool. Kagami and Hyuga were talking in the hallway.**

 **"Huh? A game?" Hyuga said "You can't play yet."**

Moriyama blinked "why not? They won the mini-game." Hyuga pointed to the screen. "You'll see."

 **"What? Why Captain!?" Kagami asked "How am I not good enough?"**

 **"You are still a trial member. You need to become an official member before you can play." Hyuga said.**

 **The scene changed to Riko playing a coaching simulation game. "Ah, I knew you had potential. Nothing beats cultivating talent." Riko sighed drinking her juice.**

Everyone gave Seirin a wary grin. "You're coach sure is dedicated." Kobori said. "More like obsessed." Hyuga said in exasperation.

 **"Coach!" Kagami yelled so loudly that it caused Riko to spit juice into his face.**

The occupants in the room chuckled.

 **Kagami wiped the juice and said "Give me an official club membership form." Riko wiped her mouth. "What's with today?" She muttered. "You're the second person to ask me that."**

 **"Huh?" Kagami said. The scene changed to Riko drinking her juice when Kuroko popped out of nowhere and said**

 **"I would like a club membership form, please." This startled Riko and she spilled her juice again.**

Everyone was laughing now. Except Kuroko who sipped his (4th-5th) milkshake.

 **'That guy' Kagami thought.**

 **"Jeez, how impatient are you rascals?" Riko muttered.**

 **"What did you call me?"**

 **"Well, you both have potential and there is room on the bench so here you go." Riko said giving Kagami a form.**

 **"Now I can play in games." Kagami said.**

 **"One minute." Riko said "I will only accept the form at 8:40 a.m. on the roof on Monday."**

"Why the roof?" Himuro asked. "You'll see." Seirin said. "Why do I get the feeling I am not going to like that line?" Kasamatsu asked. "Because we aren't. " was the general response.

 **The scene changed to Kagami walking down the hall. He stopped in front of a bulletin that had a picture of Seirin high basketball club. "He wasn't kidding. " Kagami said.**

 **"Yes, they are strong." Kuroko said. The scene showed Kuroko appearing next to Kagami like a ghost. "You...why can't you appear like a normal person!?"**

"It's Kagami-kun's fault for not paying attention." Kuroko said as everyone howled in laughter.

 **"Stop coming out of nowhere!" Kuroko shushed him and pointed at the sign above him. It said library.**

The laughter increased while Kagami glared at his partner.

 **Kagami was very mad. So mad, that he grabbed Kuroko's head, held a fist and growled "You are making fun of me. You are definitely making fun of me, aren't you?"**

The GoM and Seirin were literally dying of laughter. This was hilarious! Meanwhile, the other teams were looking at them as if they lost their minds. How can they laugh when the tiger looks like he was going to murder an adorable puppy.

 **"No" Kuroko said with not a single change of tone in his voice. Kagami let go. "That hurts." Kuroko said as he rubs his head.**

 **'I can't believe it. How can anyone call an invisible guy like him the sixth phantom man?' Kagami thought 'By the way, how did that happen? All the others went to strong schools. Why didn't he go with them?'**

"I didn't go with them because what I was seeking was different from what they were seeking." Kuroko said. Everyone was confused except for Seirin and the GoM.

 **"Hey Kuroko." Kagami called but Kuroko was gone. 'Ah well, that doesn't matter." Kagami thought. 'All that matters is that the next time I see him... I'll kill him." Kagami had a very scary aura around him.**

 **The scene changed to the roof. Riko was standing by the edge of the roof laughing dramatically. "I've been waiting for you."**

 **"Are you an idiot?" Kagami asked.**

 **"A duel?" Kuroko questioned.**

"Why the hell would you ask that?" Hyuga asked. Kuroko shrugged "The main villain always laugh like that before they battle the protagonist."

 **"I forgot all about it but Monday..." Kagami said as the screen zoomed out to show the whole school. "...is the morning assembly!" He shouted the last bit of his sentence. "Hurry up and take it!"**

 **"Before that I have something I must tell you." Riko said. "I made a promise when the captain asked me to be his coach last year. I promised to focus solely on making the team national champions. If you guys are not ready for that, then there are plenty of other clubs for you."**

The veteran teams nodded. That is definitely the attitude a coach should have.

 **"Of course I'm..." Kagami was cut off.**

 **"I know you are strong. But I need to know you have something even more important. There is no way a 'someday' or 'next time' will work. I need to know you have ambitious goals and are willing to accomplish them no matter what."**

The veteran schools nodded again. The competition is fierce. If anyone ever wishes to be champions, they have to have the attitude Riko described.

 **Riko pointed to the students gathered outside the school. "Give me your name, year and class and shout your goal for the entire school to hear. I want to see you do whatever it takes to accomplish them. If you fail, then you will come back here and confess to your crush naked."**

There was a moment of silence as the other school absorbed what Riko said. Seirin meanwhile countdown. As soon as they hit zero, a loud "WHAAAAAAAAAT!?" was heard. "You're coach really would have made you do that?" Kobori asked. Seirin nodded. The other school looked absolutely scandalized. Meanwhile the GoM were thinking that maybe they should have tried extra hard on convincing Kuroko not to go to Seirin. "No wonder they tried so hard to win." Nebuya said. "Oh the horror!" Mibuchi exclaimed. "Thank God our school has nothing like that." Wakamatsu muttered.

 **The freshmen looked horrified except Kagami and Kuroko. "The second years did it last year as well." Riko said. "I need something concrete and ambitious. You'll have to do better than playing my first game or doing my best."**

 **"This is easy" Kagami said "It's not even a test." He jumped on the railing. "Class 1-B, Number 5, Kagami Taiga! I will defeat the Generation of Miracles and become the number one player in Japan." The last bit of Kagami's sentence echoed as the school looks up in shock.**

 **Hyuuga was one of the surprised people. 'Is she doing it again this year?'**

 **Kagami came down. "Who's next? We don't have all day." Riko said.**

 **"Can I say I want a girlfriend?" Furihata asked**

 **"No" Riko denied his request without hesitation and with a smile.**

Everyone chuckled at that.

 **The scene changed to Kawahara who gave a long story about his life. Once he got to middle school, Riko kicked his face and made him move out of the way.**

Kawahara gave an embarrassed laugh. "I didn't have anything extremely ambitious like Kagami but I thought if I gave something sooner or later she'll accept."

 **Slowly the other freshmen joined in. 'Doing this really helped us focus last year.' Hyuga thought.**

"With a threat like that, who wouldn't." Susa commented. He turned to Imayoshi. "You better not make us do something as crazy as Seirin." Imayoshi gave him a lopsided smile. "Considering how the captain is also included, I wouldn't dream of it."

 **It was finally Kuroko's turn. "Excuse me" he said scaring Riko. "I'm not very good at speaking loudly. So, can I use this?" He showed a megaphone.**

"Where did you get that?" Everyone asked Kuroko. "The janitor in my middle school gave it to me." Kuroko said. The other schools were dumbfounded while the GoM were wondering if they should ask why the janitor gave him a megaphone.

 **"Where did you get that?" Riko asked. Kuroko did not answer. Instead, he went to the roof and was about to speak until**

 **"Hey!" The school officials yelled "The basketball club again!?"**

 **"Shoot!" Riko said. "We were almost done." The scene then showed the team getting lectured.**

Everyone snorted. "Congratulations freshmen you just completed the Seirin High basketball club tradition." Kiyoshi said. "Which is?" Miyaji asked wearily. "Go to the roof, yell out your goals and get yelled at by the school official until the assembly is over." Izuki said with a serious face. The others teams were wondering if they should laugh or be seriously concerned.

 **The scene changed to Kagami at Maji. He sat down in a table where Kuroko was sitting. "Can't believe he is mad over a little shouting."**

"I bet you had no idea Kuroko was sitting there." Midorima said to Kagami. Kagami grumbled.

 **"I didn't even get to say what I wanted." Kuroko said. He shocked Kagami again.**

 **"You again!"**

"Your the one who sat down with him." Izuki said. "Why does everyone keep picking on me?" Kagami asked looking annoyed. "Because you are a bakagami." Aomine said. "I don't want to hear that from an Ahomine." Kagami yelled.

 **"Maybe I should go somewhere else." Kagami muttered. He looked at Kuroko.**

 **"By the way, why didn't you go to some big name school. You're good enough to be called a sixth man." Kagami asked.**

Everyone leaned forward. They had been dying to know the answer to that.

 **Kuroko explained his team's policy and how they focused on individual talent rather than growing as a team. He explained how he felt something was amiss despite them winning all their matches.**

 **"So what?" Kagami asked. "Are you going to beat them and show them what was missing."**

 **"That is what I am thinking."**

"It's not the entire story." Izuki said quietly. Unfortunately, the room was quiet so everyone heard. The other teams raised an eyebrow. 'What on earth happened during middle school?'

"My goal for that year..." Kuroko said, catching everyone's attention "...was to make the GoM love basketball again." Everyone stared at the GoM who had their heads bend down. It was the only way to hid their misty eyes. All of them was temporarily mute because of the lump forming in their throat.

 **"Really?"**

 **"Your and coaches words really moved me. Now I want to try making the team the best in Japan." Kuroko said.**

 **"That's fine except for one thing." Kagami said. "We are not going to try to be the best, we are going to be the best." Kuroko smiled.**

 **The scene changed to the high school. Everyone was gathered around the windows and looking at something. "What's all the commotion?" Kagami wondered. As he got to the window he smiled and laughed.**

 **Written on the ground with white chalk were words that said We Will Be The Best In Japan.**

Takao whistled. "Whoever wrote that had some serious determination."

 **Riko smiled "This could be good enough to work."**

 **Kagami looked at Kuroko who was sitting down reading his book. On his sleeves were white chalk.**

"So you're the one who did that." Hyuuga smiled at Kuroko.

 **The screen went to black with a message that said. Due to a certain someone not writing their name. The message is now considered one of the six great mysteries of Seirin High.**

Everyone laughed while Kuroko gave a small whoops.

 **The scene changed to the locker room. The boys were getting ready for practice. Koganei noticed something. It was a magazine. "Didn't this come out the same time Kuroko was in middle school?" He asked.**

 **"All the players are featured." Hyuga said. They searched for Kuroko's article. "Kuroko does not have one."**

 **"Even though you are the sixth man." Koganei asked him.**

 **"They came for an interview but forget about me." Kuroko replied**

"What?" Takao said not believing a word he said. "Seriously?" Kuroko nodded. "Everyone was quite mad when that happened." Momoi said. "Well of course." Kise said. "Kurokocchi deserves to be recognized just as much as we are."

"Not to mention it took us forever to get Tetsu to agree for an interview." Aomine said "The fact that the reporter forgot him altogether made the entire effort go to waste."

"On top of that, Kuroko didn't bother telling us until after the article was released." Midorima said. "So there was nothing we could do about it."

 **'So sad' they all thought looking dead.**

 **"Besides I'm nothing like the other five."**

Kuroko sighed as the GoM glared at him. They would always get mad at him for saying stuff like that.

 **"They are the true prodigies." Fukuda came in. "She's back! The coach is back! We are going to be having a practice match."**

 **"Wonder who we are playing" Hyuga said.**

 **"Who knows. But she was skipping for some reason."**

 **"Skipping!?" Hyuga was shocked. "Everyone get ready. If she is skipping then that means the opponent is really strong."**

"They are strong." Seirin said. "Who did you have a practice match with?" Himuro asked. "Kaijou." They replied. Said team smiled at the compliment.

 **The screen changed to show the front of the school. "This is Seirin." A blond hair guy wearing a beige uniform was standing in front of the gate.**

Kise was glowing. In fact, he was glowing so much that Kasamatsu had to hit him. He was blinding everyone!

 **"New and pristine just as I expected. " As he walked through the school, girls squealed and whispered. Meanwhile, Seirin were having their daily practice. As they watched Kagami practice. They wondered if he could rival the GoM.**

"Not at that state." Seirin immediately rebooted.

 **"Alright everyone gather around." Riko said. She informed them about the practice match against Kaijou. "This year they got hands on one of the miracles, Kise Ryouta."**

"That's me!" Kise shouted. Kasamatsu hits him again.

 **"Apparently Kise is a model." Hyuga said.**

 **"Good looking and good at basketball." Koganei said. "How brutal."**

Kise was once again glowing. The GoM and Kuroko sighed. This is going to make him more of a narcissist than he already his! Kaijou was running a hand across their faces. How the hell did the GoM survived with him for 2 years? They could barely handle 1!

 **"Idiot" Riko said. She noticed a huge line of girls**.

 **"I didn't want this to happen." Kise said**

 **'What is the Generation of Miracle's Kise Ryouta doing here?'**

 **Kise looked at Kuroko who greeted him "Long time no see."**

 **Kise smiled "It's good to see you too. Sorry but...could you wait for five minutes?"**

"It took more than 5 minutes." Kagami said. "Some of us nearly fell asleep."

 **A time skip happened and Kise's fans were gone.**

'Thank God for T.V world.' Everyone thought.

 **"What are you doing here?" Hyuga asked**

"Visiting Kurokocchi." Kise said

 **"Well I heard we have a practice match against Seirin, and I remembered Kurokocchi goes to this school so I decided to drop by for a visit." Kise said "We were really close back in middle school."**

 **"No more than anyone else." Kuroko said with a deadpanned face.**

The GoM laughed while Seirin and Kaijou smiled. Everyone else were thinking 'Well...that was harsh.'

 **"So mean" Kise said with crocodile tears.**

 **The freshmen read the article about Kise in the magazine.**

 **"That article exaggerated quite a bit." Kise said sheepishly.**

"It's good to see that you are aware of that." Akashi said.

 **"I'm the weakest of the bunch. They would pick on me and Kurokocchi all the time."**

"We wouldn't pick on Tetsuya." Akashi said with a frown.

"Tetsu wasn't as annoying as Kise." Aomine said.

"Or as dumb" Midorima added. Murasakibara dealt the final blow by saying "He also gave me snacks without complaining." Kise sulked "So mean." Kagami gave a blank look and asked Kuroko "Are they always like this?" Kuroko nodded "Every single time."

 **"It never happened to me." Kuroko said**

 **"It was just me then!?" Kise said with crocodile tears again. Everyone else moaned.**

Kasamatsu hits Kise "It hasn't even been a day and you're already annoying them.

 **Kagami challenges Kise to a short one on one. Kuroko told Riko that it probably isn't a smart idea.**

 **Kagami and Kise have a small one on one. Kise won it by copying Kagami's move.**

 **It showed a flashback of Kuroko talking to Riko. "Kise-kun can copy any move just by seeing it once."**

 **The scene changed back to Kise. He asked Kuroko to join him at Kaijou since Seirin isn't good enough for him."**

'We showed them' Seirin thought grumpily.

 **Kuroko politely declined. "I am honored to hear you say that but I must respectfully declined your offer."**

 **"That doesn't make sense. Winning was everything to us back then. Why didn't you go somewhere better?"**

 **"My thinking has changed. Besides I promised Kagami-kun that we will defeat the Generation of Miracles."**

 **"This isn't like you to joke."**

 **Kagami laughed. 'This is the Generation of Miracles and there are four more guys stronger than him.'**

Those that were not there blinked. Normally when something like that is realized the player's spirit is crushed. Kagami really is the perfect opponent for them.

 **Kagami looked at Kise with a smile. "The heck Kuroko, I was supposed to say that.**

 **"I still have no sense of humor." Kuroko said. "I'm serious."**

 **Kise smirked. The scene changed to show the three of them standing side by side. The screen went blank.**

"That's it for this episode." Kasamatsu said. "Aww...no mini-clip" Kotaro said. "Maybe the next one." Mibuchi said. The screen then showed a picture of Riko and Hyuga. "Aww" the immature ones said. Meanwhile teased Hyuga who trying to hid his blush.

There might not be another one for a while. Since I am going on vacation soon. So sorry! :(

I try my best to update as fast as I can.

Please r&r!


	6. Chapter 6

Hey! I hope everyone enjoyed the last chapter. A couple of reviewers gave me some nice comments and great advice and I wanted to shouted out to you all for the awesome reviews. You are my motivation to keep going.

Episode 3

Hyuga looked at the time. "How about we all take a lunch break?" The other schools nodded. Seirin immediately went off to the kitchens to cook. The other schools offered to help but Seirin refused.

After half an hour a delicious meal was cooked for all of them. "So good." Miyaji said. "Hmm, reminds me of the street basketball court." Takao said. The other team also gave their compliments as well. Seirin team humbly brushed it off.

After the meal they went back to the room. "Alright let's watch!" Kotaro cheered. "The next episode is our practice match against Kaijou, I believe." Izuki said. "So let's hurry up and watch." Fukai said. Everyone sat down excitedly waiting for the episode to begin.

 **The scene showed Kaijou High school.**

"That's our school." Kobori said. "Good school and cute girls." Moriyama said. Kasamatsu hit him on the back.

 **"This place is huge."**

 **"You can clearly tell what school is devoted to their athletics." Hyuga said.**

Kaijou happily nodded.

 **The screen changed to show Kagami's bloodshot eyes. "Kagami-kun your eyes looks worse than usual." Kuroko said**

 **"Shut up" Kagami said "I couldn't get any sleep." The screen showed a short flashback. Kagami was lying in his bed feeling excited about the practice game. Unfortunately, he was so excited that he forgot to sleep.**

"Bakagami" Seirin said. The immature ones laughed while mature ones sighed "How are you still clever, Tetsuya?" Akashi asked. "I mean you had to suffer through Daiki in middle school and now Taiga in High school."

"Oi!" Aomine and Kagami said. They were ignored.

"Same way Momoi-san is still smart." Kuroko said.

"Tetsu-kun is so sweet." Momoi squealed.

 **"What are you? A kid going on a field trip?" Kuroko said bluntly.**

 **"Why you!" Kagami said glaring at Kuroko."**

 **"Oi, everyone" a voice was heard. Everyone turned to look. It was Kise.**

 **"This place is big so I thought I would come and get you." He ignored Seirin and went straight to Kuroko.**

"You're being rude." Kasamatsu told Kise as he kicked him.

 **"Kurokocchi ever since you turned me down, I haven't been sleeping at all. Not a single girl has turned me down before." Kise said with crocodile tears.**

 **"Could you please stop being so sarcastic." Kuroko said. Kise stopped crying and smirked. He turned to look at Kagami.**

 **"Although, I'm more interested to know more about the guy that made Kurokocchi say what he said." Kise said as he looked at Kagami. He walked past Kagami. "I don't care being called one of the Kiseki no Sedai but I can't ignore such an obvious challenge." Kagami looked at Kise. "Sorry, I am not mature enough to let it slide. I will crush you with everything I have."**

 **"Sounds good." Kagami grinned.**

 **The scene changed to the gym. The basketball court was divided into two sections. The Seirin team members looked surprised.**

"Oh yeah" Hyuga said with a twitch. "I forgot this happened." Izuki patted his shoulder. "There, there at least we got them back." (A/N: I know Izuki should make a pun here. But I am horrible with them!)

 **"We are playing on half-court." Riko said "The other half is being used for practice." Kaijou coach greeted and introduced himself. Riko returned back the greeting.**

 **"What is going on?" Riko asked politely.**

 **Kaijou's coach explained how there wasn't much to learn from this game so he's letting the others practice.**

'Oh boy' the other teams thought. They looked at Seirin who looked livid by the mere memory of this scene.

 **"Despite the arrangements you will be facing against our regulars. Don't let us triple the score." He concluded. Riko was beyond furious. The regulars were not any better.**

 **"They think we suck." Kagami said in absolute fury. "They are treating us as a sideshow to their practice." Kuroko look at Kagami and smiled.**

'He's planning something.' All the GoM except Kise thought. Kise just gave a fond smile.

 **Kise was wearing his uniform when the coach said that he wasn't playing. "What?" Kise asked. The coach told him that if he played the game wouldn't be considered a game anymore.**

The others were expecting Seirin to be beyond furious but to their surprise, Seirin was smiling cheerfully. It was really creepy! Even Kuroko was creeped out as he left the table and sat next to Kise. Kise was beyond happy as he hugged Kuroko while the other GoM grumbled.

After Seirin returned back to their normal facial expression, Kuroko went back to the Seirin table.

 **Kise looked at Seirin and gave them a weary apology. "If you guys give this guy a good beating, he might consider putting me in." Kise said in a whisper. "Besides, if you can't do that much then you shouldn't go around saying you'll beat the Kiseki no Sedai." The coach asked him to show Seirin the locker rooms.**

 **"That's okay." Kuroko told Kise as Seirin went to the locker rooms. "Please warm up because we can't afford to wait." Kise was shocked but he smirked shortly afterwards.**

"This is going to be good." Takao said rubbing his hand excitedly. Because of the traffic he missed the entire game. Tsun Tsun Shin-chan got to see it because he abandoned Takao and walked the rest of the way.

 **The regulars of each team are lined up. "We are about to start." The referee said impatiently. "Seirin, please have your 5 members lined up.**

 **"Excuse me." Kuroko said "There are 5." His sudden appearance shocked the referee and Kaijou.**

 **"He's right in front of me and I didn't even notice." Kobori said "What about you Kasamatsu?"**

 **"Same here." Kasamatsu said.**

 **"This is ridiculous with all the boasting you would think there are a few decent players." Kaijou coach said.**

 **"We'll see." Kise said "You might be right. They might not just be decent after all."**

 **Everyone got ready for the tipoff. "Oww" Riko said as she analyzed the numbers of the Kaijou player.**

" **What's wrong coach?" Koganei asked her.**

 **'This doesn't look good. I can't see everything through their clothing but their numbers are above average. As expected of a national level team. Our physical numbers are way behind too. We have Kuroko-kun and Kagami-kun but how long will that last?'**

"So that is what she was wincing about." Koganei said.

 **The tipoff started with Kaijou getting the ball. Kasamatsu got it. He leisurely dribbled the ball. "Alright." He said "One let's keep it up." At that moment Kuroko snuck up to him, stole the ball and headed for the hoop.**

 **"What!?" Kasamatsu was completely caught off guard. He chased after Kuroko. "Where did he come from?" Kasamatsu caught up to Kuroko. 'He's slow.' At that moment Kuroko passed to Kagami, who came behind Kasamatsu. Kagami took the ball and dunked it into the hoop. Seirin scored the first point shocking Kaijou while Seirin's team smiled smugly.**

Seirin gave a small cheer while the other schools clapped at the nice teamwork. Some people had already seen the game but the T.V has made get excited as if they never played or seen the game in the first place. In a way, it is the first time. They were watching the game from various angles, music and hearing and learning things they never did on the court. "That shocked us." Moriyama said "But not as badly as the next thing."

 **"Alright!" Kagami yelled. He looked at his hand and noticed...**

"You guys broke theirhoop!" The other teams asked Seirin with wide eyes. Some of them (the shadows, the uncrowned generals and GoM) laughed while others just shook their heads.

 **...the hoop in his hand. "What!?" He said**

 **"He broke the hoop."**

 **"Are you serious? I don't believe it."**

 **"That's dangerous. One of the bolts is rusted." Izuki observed.**

 **"Even so that is not normal." Kasamatsu said with wide eyes.**

 **"The hoop is bigger than I thought." Kagami said sheepishly, not reading the situation at all.**

 **"I'm sorry. " Riko said as Kaijou's coach was mad. Kuroko and Kagami went up to the coaches.**

 **"We are sorry we broke your hoop." Kuroko said. Kaijou's coach looked up at him. "Since we can't play like this, could we please the full court?" Kuroko politely asked.**

The other schools didn't know why but they howled in laughter. 'So this was what he wanted.' The GoM except Kise thought. Kise was just laughing at the memory. It's pretty hilarious.

 **The coach growled while Kise smirk widened.**

 **The scene changed to show Kaijou getting the court ready. The broken hoop was left to the side. "Now that is what I call a beating." Kise laughed.**

Everyone nodded in agreement.

 **"Huh"**

 **"I've never seen the coach like that before."**

 **"You should tell him that is what he gets for underestimating us."**

"Noted" the other schools said with amusement.

 **"How much do you think a replacement hoop costs?" Kuroko asked. The question caught Kagami off guard.**

 **"We have to pay for that!?" He exclaimed.**

Everyone chuckled. "You guys are something else." Takao told Kuroko. He was wiping away a tear and gasping for breath.

 **The scene changed to Kise coming to play in the match. "Sorry to keep you waiting." He smirked.**

 **"You are more intense now than you are as a model." Hyuga said.**

"Well basketball is the only thing where I am not pretending." Kise said with a sad smile. No one noticed the smile except the Kaijou team and Kuroko.

 **"He's not pretending to put on a show." Kuroko said.**

"Kurokocchi really understands me." Kise said with a happy smile. He was hugging Kuroko to death. "That hurts" Kuroko said with a monotone voice. Kise stopped hugging and blinked. He looked at Kuroko who was...sitting right next to him? The entire Kaijou team blinked along with everyone else. Then simultaneously questions were asked such as "When did you get here/there?" and "Why are you sitting there/here?" Kuroko blinked "Since Kise-kun came into the game and I wanted to sit here." The Seirin team and other GoM grumbled while Kise was beyond ecstatic. He got to sit next to his lovely Kurokocchi.

 **'Amazing' Riko thought as she analyzed Kise 'Now that I look at him more clearly. It's obvious that Kise Ryouta is a monster.'**

 **There were a lot of girls screaming. Riko looked over and noticed Kise's fan are cheering for him. "What the!?" Hyuga exclaimed**

Aomine sighed "I forgot how annoying those god damn fangirls of yours are, Kise." Kise gave a sheepish smile. "They can be a little extreme." Midorima pushed up his glasses. "If screaming their lungs off every time you do something, stealing every basketballs, towels, wristbands, water bottles and shoes you touch or glaring at every girl _and boy_ you talk to is considered little, then I don't want to know what you considered extreme." He told Kise with a very annoyed look in his face. "The reason why Kise-kun considers it a little is because he is a narcissist." Kuroko told Midorima. "Kurokocchi's so mean." Kise wailed.

 **"Oh that" Kasamatsu said as Kise waved at his fans.**

"Narcissist" everyone said. Kise pouted.

 **"They come every single time he plays in a game." Kasamatsu looks at Kise "Besides..." He kicked Kise at his back. "How long do you plan to wave at them!?"**

Everyone chuckled. "I see that Ryouta is in good hands." Akashi with an amused smile. "How is me being kicked around good for me?" Kise asked. "Cause you're an idiot." Aomine said "Mine-chin has no right to call someone an idiot." Murasakibara said. "I can't believe I am saying this but I agree with Murasakibara." Midorima said offhandedly. "SHUT UP!" Aomine yelled annoyed. "The Kiseki no Sedai everybody." Kuroko said as if he is a talk show host.

 **"Quit waving or I'll hit you." Kise got up and held his lower back.**

 **"You already hit me, Kasamatsu-senpai." Kise wailed.**

 **"Do you even realize the situation we are in?" Kasamatsu asked Kise. "Who is that number 10?"**

 **"That's Kagami." Kise said "Forget about him."**

Kagami growled.

 **"The one who stole the ball, number 11. He's my former teammate, Kurokocchi. Isn't he amazing?"**

"Kise-kun flatters me too much." Kuroko said. His voice gave no indication that he is embarrassed but those that know him well saw a faint brush of pink in his cheeks. Kise smiled because he saw it "That's not true." He said to Kuroko with a gentle tone and smile. "Whatever I say about Kurokocchi is always the truth." The red in Kuroko's cheeks were more obvious.

 **"Anyway, they gave us quite the greeting. Don't you think we should return the favor?"**

 **Kise nodded with a determined look.**

"How courteous of you." Seirin said

 **Kasamatsu passed the ball to Kise who dunked dunked the ball like Kagami with more force. Kasamatsu hit Kise. "I told you to break the hoop." He yelled.**

 **'That dunk was more powerful than mine.' Kagami thought.**

"Nice to see you are not a complete idiot." Hyuga said.

 **Kise walked past Kagami "I can't say the same for girls but in basketball I never failed to return the favor."**

"That's not good, Kise-kun, you should treat women more delicately." Kuroko lectured Kise. 'Is/Am Kise/I seriously getting a lecture on girls by Kuroko/Kurokocchi of all people.' Everyone in the room thought.

 **Kagami eyebrows twitched "Bring it on." Hyuga passed to Kuroko.**

 **Kasamatsu looked at Kuroko 'him again.' Kuroko passed the ball to Kagami who dunked the ball. "Let's go all out." He yelled.**

"What do you think we've been doing?" Hyuga asked

 **Kasamatsu looked at Kuroko again. 'Who is he?'**

"Senpai I already told you he's my former teammate." Kise said with a pout. Kasamatsu hit him "Shut Up!" Kasamatsu yelled.

 **As the game continued, Riko looked amazed and worried for some reason. 'What's this?' She thought as she tried to keep track of the game.**

 **"What's with the high pace game?" Koganei asked trying to keep up with the game. The score showed Seirin-16 and Kaijou-17. Every time one team scored a basket, the other team would retaliate.**

 **'It's only been three minutes since they started playing.'**

"That's quite the intense pressure for a practice game." Nebuya said. "It tends to happen when you underestimate your opponent." Akashi said. "What do you mean Sei-chan?"

"When a team you assume to be weaker counters like the way Seirin did, all you can think about is trying to get the lead as soon as possible. Of course that means your opponent-who fought hard to earn that momentum-will try just as hard to keep it." Akashi explained.

"In other words, when your opponent shows his fist, you show him guns...right?" Takao asked. Akashi nodded. "It's just human instincts."

 **'Its like they are beating each other without a guard. The defense is doing all they can but the offense is too strong. This is a clash between the Generation of Miracles.'**

Kuroko frowned. "I wouldn't call it exactly a clash between the GoM since it's only Kise-kun." Kise fisted his hand. "You're a member too, Kurokocchi." Kuroko shook his head.

 **'The other four are just as intense as Kise.' Hyuga thought. 'If it weren't for Kuroko and Kagami, they would have won.' He passed to Kuroko who passed to Kagami. Kagami tried to do a fade away but Kise blocked it. Kise took the ball to the opponent's side. He copied Kagami's move.**

 **'A fade away!? He's copying me again!'**

Kise smirked. Even though the game was already in the past, he can't help but be invested in the game despite already playing it.

 **The ball went in to the hoop. 'And he keeps on getting better.' Hyuga dribbled the ball with a focused look until...**

 **"Captain" Kuroko said. This caused Hyuga to jump and nearly lose the ball.**

 **"What do you want? Why are you talking to me?" Hyuga asked**

 **"I need a time out. This high pace is taking a toll in my body. "**

 **"What? How can you be so weak?"**

 **"Also we need to calm Kagami-kun down." Kuroko said as if he didn't hear him "The harder he plays, the harder Kise-kun will plays. At this rate, it will take all we have just to keep up."**

 **'He's talking more than usual. Could the situation actually be that bad?' Hyuga looked at the score table. Riko was requesting for a time out. 'I guess so.'**

"You know, I've noticed this for a while but Kuroko and Riko are really on par when it comes to strategic planning." Hyuga said.

"But of course." Akashi said. "It was always him and Satsuki that came up with our game plans. He is the best planner in our group." Kuroko shifted "They worked only because of Momoi-san data and Akashi-kun input."

"Tetsu-kun is too humble."

 **"Seirin Time Out"**

 **All of Seirin were tired and out of breath. 'They are way too tired for just playing 5 minutes. Well it's not really a huge surprise considering that they been switching between defense and offense at a ridiculous pace.' On the other side, Kaijou's coach was yelling at his players.**

 **"This isn't easy." Moriyama said**

 **"Yeah" Kasamatsu agreed. "The first-year duo is absolutely brutal."**

"No kidding." Everyone that faced the duo muttered.

 **Kasamatsu turned to Kise "You should be able to handle Kagami but what is with that Kuroko guy?" It showed a flashback of Kuroko stealing the ball.**

 **Kise smiled brightly "I know right. Actually..." Kasamatsu hits him.**

 **"Why are you so happy?"**

Everyone laughed. "Honestly, he's like a golden retriever when it comes to Kuroko." Takao sweatdropped. Midorima snorted.

 **"Don't worry. The balance will tip soon." Kise said.**

 **It changed to Seirin side of the court. "We have to stop Kise-kun first." Riko said.**

 **"I can't believe Kagami is not enough to handle him. Maybe we should put another guy." Hyuga said.**

 **"Hey, wait...Please." Kagami said.**

"You being polite." Midorima snorted.

 **"There is a way." Kuroko interrupted.**

 **"What do you mean?" Kasamatsu asked.**

 **"It's because..." Kise started. The scene split to show Kuroko and Kise side by side.**

 **"They have a weakness."**

The other teams raised an eyebrow. What are the chances of that happen?

 **The screen went back to the Seirin side. "A weakness?" Riko asked**

 **"You should've told us earlier." Hyuga said**

 **"No, I'm still not sure if you can call it a weakness." Kuroko said. "Also I need to apologize, because of the high pace, my effectiveness is running out."**

 **"What!?" Kuroko's teammates gape at him.**

"Don't you think information like that is important for your team to know." Himuro asked with a bemused smile. "They didn't ask." Kuroko said. Everyone literally fell off their seats. "SERIOUSLY!" Kuroko gave them a blank look.

 **Back to Kaijou's side, "They won't be able able to use their misdirection after 40 minutes." Kise said.**

 **"Mis...what?" Kasamatsu asked. Kise started explaining Kuroko's ability to him.**

"I couldn't believe that a player could actually use something like that in basketball." Kasamatsu said. "Where you the one that suggested that to him, Sei-chan?" Mibuchi asked.

Akashi shook his head. "All I did was hint him to use his lack of presence in something he is good at. The idea of using misdirection in passing is something he came up with all on his own." Akashi gave a nostalgic smile. "It was the first of the many times he exceeded my expectations." Everyone was starting at Kuroko in awe. 'And he keeps on doing it.' Akashi thought as he proudly looked at his phantom.

 **"But the more he uses it, the more we get to it." Kise said.**

 **Back to Seirin, "Why didn't you tell us something this important sooner." Riko raged putting Kuroko in a headlock.**

 **"I'm sorry, you didn't ask." Kuroko said.**

Everyone gave a blank look except for Kuroko who was drinking a vanilla milkshake.

 **"Do you not say anything unless asked?" Riko yelled. 'I must not have been thinking.'**

 **A whistle was blown "Time-up is over."**

 **"All I did was hit Kuroko-kun." Riko despaired.**

 **"Let him play...please." Kagami asked Riko.**

 **"Why are you being so polite?" Riko asked with a wary look.**

"What's wrong with me being polite?" Kagami asked. "It's creepy." Everyone said.

 **"I have a feeling I'll get something." Kagami said.**

 **As the regulars went to the court Riko stopped them. "Switch from Man to Man defense to zone defense. Move to stop Kise-kun quickly, he is your first priority. Also Kuroko-kun try to slow down your pace. Just don't let the gap increase."**

 **"I'll try." Kuroko said.**

 **The game began.**

 **"They are defending the middle." Someone from the audience observed.**

 **'They are concentrating on stopping Kise." Kasamatsu sighed 'I can't believe it'**

Seirin shrugged. "Can't expect much from a last minute plan." Hyuga said.

 **Kise passed the ball to Kasamatsu who scored a basket. "Aren't you underestimating us?" He challenged. "How pathetic."**

 **"This isn't easy." Hyuga smirked. Kagami had the ball. He passed it to Kuroko but it was stolen by Moriyama. 'It's getting easier.' Moriyama thought.**

 **"This isn't good." Izuki thought.**

 **"Dammit the gap is increasing." Koganei said from the bench. Mitobe passed to Kagami who went for a dunk but was blocked by Kise.**

 **"Out of bounds! White ball."**

 **Kagami was panting. "Why don't you acknowledge it already?" Kise told him. "You are years behind from challenging the Kiseki no Sedai."**

Kagami smirked. "I never got to thank you for that speech did I?" He told Kise. Kaijou and Seirin gave Kagami a 'you are such a weirdo' look.

 **"What did you say?" Kagami said facing Kise.**

 **"The gap might get bigger but it definitely won't get smaller. The difference between your team and my team is too great. You are the only one who could stand against us but I saw how good you are. I'll admit you have potential but your still far below me. No matter what you throw at me, with one look I'll return it twice as good.**

 **Kagami narrowed his eyes.**

 **"You can struggle but you'll never beat me." Kise said confidently. "The world isn't that easy."**

 **Kagami looked down on the ground. All of a sudden, he chuckled and continued until he was full out laughing.**

'The hell?' Everyone thought except Kaijou-who already experienced this-while Seirin sighed. "Kagami-kun is a loon." Kuroko said

 **Everyone stared at him. "Sorry, I was so happy." Kagami said**

 **"Happy?" Kise questioned.**

 **"It's been a long time since I heard that. I used to hear it all the time over there."**

 **"Over there?"**

 **"America."**

"Taiga is right about that." Himuro said "the competition there is almost as intense as two GoM facing off against each other." Everyone really wanted to go to America now.

 **"What? You live in America? That's amazing." Kise said excitedly.**

"Only you can go from an intense player to an excited puppy." Kasamatsu told Kise exasperated.

"I'm not a puppy." Kise pouted.

'You are when it comes to Kuroko.' Kaijou, Seirin and GoM thought.

 **"I thought I jumped the gun when I came here. Your words really encouraged me. You're right, life is all about challenges. It's no fun if you don't have a strong opponent to play against. And thanks to you, I found a weakness." Kagami said confidently as he walked by Kise.**

 **"Weakness?" Kise asked surprised.**

 **"I'm sure it wasn't easy for you to say it. With one look? What if you can't see it? No matter how athletic you are, you cannot obtain an invisible basketball style." Kagami said as he grabbed Kuroko's head. "In other words..." Kagami stated confidently as he pulled Kuroko towards him. "...this guy is your weakness."**

"I'm surprised that an idiot like you actually figured all that out." Hyuga said with genuine amazement. Kagami grumbled

 **Everyone stared at Kagami in shock while he chuckled confidently. The screen showed Kuroko's expression. He looked exasperated. "What are you doing?" The screen went blank.**

"End of the episode." Otsubo said. "That was very entertaining." Miyaji said. "Unfortunately that's all we can watch for today." Imayoshi said.

 **The screen turned on. It showed a picture of Kise and Kasamatsu. Both had their cell phones. Kise was happily chatting while Kasamatsu looked extremely annoyed.**

Kise smiled while Kasamatsu grumbled. Everyone else gave them an amused smile.

Done! After a relaxing vacation to Florida. I am back and have finished the chapter. I am terribly sorry for the delay and for this choppy episode. Please forgive me. Uni is starting so now chapters are going to be less frequent. Terribly sorry for the inconvenience. I am also planning a new KnB fic. It's inspired by the "Forbidden" by the Eternal Empress. You should read it. It's good but get ready for lot of Angst.


	7. Chapter 7

Hi everyone! How's it going? Hope you all enjoyed the last chapter. I received so many reviews and favorites and followers. Arigato Gozaimashita!

Btw, I've noticed people wants to really see the reaction where Kuroko is either hurt or sad. I guess people are really sadistic towards Kuroko or really wants the GoM to realize just how much of a jerk they were.

Anyways let's move on. This episode is an extra episode. So no chapter. Sorry. But don't worry. It's on it's way.

Chapter 7:

After all 3 episodes were done, Seirin made dinner. Everyone devoured it just like the lunch. An hour later, everyone hit the bath. It was hectic! After the baths were put in order-coughAkashicough- everyone got ready for bed.

The rooms are located in the first floor. Room 1-5 are on one side of the hallway while Room 6-10 are on the other side.

Some rooms were very calm. Other rooms...not so much. Here is a small scenario what happened in each room starting from the calmest.

Room 3: Captains Room

The calmest and most mature room. It seemed that instead of beds. They are now sleeping in futons. Imayoshi looked at Hyuga. "You guys have your work cut out for you." (A/N: I probably said beds before but let's make it futons.) Hyuga shrugged. "It's fine." Everyone picked the futon they wanted to sleep in. There was no arguments.

Room 4:

The only difference between this room and the previous room is Izuki was making his puns. Kotaro was laughing and everyone was wondering what on earth was wrong with Kotaro's sense of humor. It wasn't until Miyaji said that they should get some sleep that the silence came. There was no dispute on which futon they will take.

Room 5:

This room was louder than the other two. Nebuya was eating some more snacks despite having dinner. Wakamatsu being as short-tempered as ever yelled him to stop eating. This caused an argument between the two. Kiyoshi chuckled. He found it amusing and said things that made the argument worse. The argument didn't stop until Hyuga, Akashi and Imayoshi send them messages to go to sleep. Yes, they were that loud that everyone could hear them. It also did not help that the walls were not soundproof.

Room 2:

This room was quiet at first. They were quietly listening to the arguments of Room 5. After a while, Takao turned to Mayuzumi and asked "How is Akashi as a teammate?" Mayuzumi looked at Takao. "Are you curious because of all the rumors? Or are you curious because of what Midorima told you?" He asked.

Takao shrugged "Both because Shin-chan barely says anything. Honestly, he is so antisocial."

Mayuzumi closed his book. "Akashi is a good captain. He is a reliable point guard. He's also very serious about practice. The only issue is that he requires absolute obedience. If not, then be prepared for his scissors. That was before winter cup. After winter cup, he is still good as a captain and still reliable. He practices as hard as ever and he stills requires obedience but no scissors. Another difference is that he is very motherly. In fact, he is so motherly that it's downright creepy."

Kagami snorted "Kuroko told me about that. He said that one time Aomine went as far as calling him mom."

"SERIOUSLY!?" Everyone exclaimed.

Mayuzumi looked at the rest of the group. "What about you?" He asked "How are the rest of the miracles?" Takao spoke first. "Shin-chan was literally the worst teammate a guy can ask for. The guy has so much pride. No matter what he wouldn't pass the ball, every single time he has the ball he just has to do his three-shot. He's extremely selfish as well. In fact, he's so selfish that the coach made a rule that none of the seniors can get mad at him until he exceeds 3 selfish requests. The good thing about him was that he would practice harder than anyone in the team." Kagami whistled. "That's pretty bad." Takao shrugged. "He got better after we lost to Seirin. In fact it's almost creepy. He is still prideful and selfish but at least now he passes the ball more and is more involved in the team strategy. In fact, on our second match against Seirin he said he was willing to be decoy. Can you believe that!? Tsun Tsun Shin-chan coming up with a plan for the team and playing decoy!?"

Himuro tilted his head. "You know, Atsushi told me that Midorima and Kuroko were the ones that came up with most of the GoM game plans whenever Akashi was busy with his other works." Takao tilted his head "Like what?" Himuro gave a bemused smile "Akashi was the student council president."

'That Akashi is something else.' Everyone thought.

"I remember when we talked about the change in Midorima, Kuroko said "Midorima-kun didn't change at all. He's just back to his middle school self." He also said that Midorima was very motherly." Kagami added later.

Takao gaped "What!?"

"He wasn't as bad as Akashi but he was still there. He would lecture Murasakibara to eat healthier, encourage Kuroko to eat more, check their health every practice to make sure they were okay, and lecture Kise and Aomine whenever they were being idiots. Basically, if Akashi was the mom, Midorima would be the father.

Takao snorted. "Better make sure Shin-chan doesn't hear you say that."

Himuro gave a wary smile. "At least, Akashi-kun and Midorima-kun practiced. Atsushi wouldn't even do that! All he would do once he comes to the gym, is sit somewhere and eat his sweets. The only time he would practice was when we bribed him with sweets. Honestly, the amount of money our team lost. Let's also not forget his child-like attitude. Thankfully after the Winter Cup, he is still childish but at least he comes to practice and practice without sweets. Sometimes he would share his sweet with us."

Kagami blinked "I can't imagine him doing something like that." He turned to Sakurai. "How is that Ahomine as a team mate?" Sakurai fidgeted. Takao gave him a reassured smile. "Relax, no one will ever know." After a moment of hesitation, he spoke. "At least Murasakibara-san went to the gym. Aomine-san didn't even do that. All he did was go to the roof and sleep. Not even Momoi-san could get him to practice. Not to mention, he's extremely rude and arrogant."

Kagami twitched "I am so _**not**_ surprised."

"He got better after the Winter Cup. Even though he is still arrogant and rude, he at least comes to practice now. Though sometimes it takes a little blackmailing." Sakurai said with a squeaky voice.

"Blackmail?" Takao asked. "We threaten to burn his magazines if he doesn't show up." Sakurai said. Himuro raised his eyebrows. "What kind of magazines?" Sakurai fidgeted again "Women swimsuit magazine." Everyone gave a 'are you serious?' look. "So not only is he an idiotic jerk but also a pervert." Kagami sighed. "How the hell is Kuroko still alive?"

'Same way he is alive with you.' Everyone in the room thought.

Kobori sighed "I guess all of us have some kind of trouble with the miracles huh." Everyone looked at him. "You can probably guess that the main problem we had with Kise was how annoying he could be. Aside from that, whenever he had a model shoot during practice, he would prioritize modelling over basketball. Not to mention, he would sometimes skip because he was bored." Kobori suddenly smiled. "But just like the rest of them, he changed. We probably wouldn't have noticed in the past but his smile is more genuine now. He prioritizes practice over modelling and now thinking of ways to help out the team." Kagami smiled "Kuroko will be happy to hear that." Kobori raised an eyebrow at him. "Kuroko was Kise's mentor." Kagami elaborated. "So Kuroko feels a special fondness for though don't tell Kuroko & Kise I said it."

Everyone was staring at Kagami. "What!?" He asked "How's Kuroko?" Everyone questioned back. Kagami blinked. "He's okay." Himuro sighed "Details Taiga." Kagami grumbled. "Fine."

"Based on what I heard he is the complete opposite of the GOM. He's kind,-in his own blunt and emotionless way- hardworking and respectful. The only issue we had with him was keeping an eye on him." Kagami said. 'Lucky jerks!' Everyone thought. 'I bet if our captain hear this, the first thing they will ask is if Kuroko was interested in transferring schools.'

"After the Winter Cup, he was the same except now he's opening up to us now." Kagami said not at all noticing what the others were thinking.

"It's getting quite late." Mayuzumi said noticing the time. He also noticed that all the other rooms were quite. "We should go to sleep. We have an early practice tomorrow."

And so everyone went to bed. Due to the non-soundproof walls the neighbouring rooms probably would have been able to hear them. But due to the ruckus caused by Room 5 and the next room no one heard anything except the shouts.

Room 1:

The first thing that happened in this room was Kise claiming the futon by the window. Aomine said he also wanted a futon near the window so he claimed the futon in front of Kise's. Kise objected "I don't want to sleep next to Aominecchi. He snores like a boar." This caused Kise and Aomine to start arguing.

Everyone sighed. This was something they were completely used to. Meanwhile Murasakibara took the largest futon away from the window. "Thanks Kuro-chin for keeping my futon away from the window." He said patting Kuroko on the head. Kuroko swatted his hand away.

Midorima and Akashi decided to play a shogi match. Both were so engrossed in their match that they didn't notice Kuroko sitting side of the table between them, watching the match. He stayed quiet the entire time.

It wasn't until Akashi won the match, Kuroko said "As expected of Akashi-kun." Both Akashi and Midorima were surprised. Midorima being more obvious than Akashi. "What are you doing here?" Midorima asked "Watching" Kuroko said. Midorima sighed while Akashi gave an amused smile. They decided to play another round.

Unfortunately, Kise and Aomine were still arguing. It came to the point where Midorima could not concentrate. "WILL YOU TWO BE QUIET!? SOME OF US ARE TRYING TO CONCENTRATE HERE!" He yelled.

Murasakibara was eating his snacks idly said "Ah, the mean green angry dragon is back." Everyone stopped moving as they looked at Murasakibara with wide eyes. They looked at Midorima-he was beyond mad-his eyes were hidden behind his glasses giving it an ominous gleam. "What…Did…You…Call…Me!?" Every word was laced with venom. You see Midorima is a very calm person but when he is angry…he's angry. One day, back in Teikou a situation came when Midorima lost his cool. After that, everyone in the club called him "mean green angry dragon". Coincidently, a statue of a green dragon was Midorima's lucky item for that day.

Not wishing to see the dragon anytime soon, Kuroko quickly set off to calm Midorima down by telling him about a book Mayuzumi recommended him. Yes, Mayuzumi and Kuroko interacted outside of the court. Kuroko is text buddies with him, Takao, Himuro, Kasamatsu and Imayoshi. Why!? Because of the Kiseki no Sedai. Whenever they were causing trouble for the teams, Kuroko's text buddies would call him and ask for his advice.

The book did calm Midorima down as he engaged on a conversation with Kuroko about the book. Aomine and Kise sighed 'Thank you Tetsu/Kurokocchi!' Meanwhile Akashi was thinking ' _Grave of the Fireflies?'_ He thought 'That's the book Mayuzumi-senpai just finished reading. I guess he and Tetsuya really are a lot alike.'

After that, Akashi told everyone to sleep. He texted Nebuya to shut up or he will do double the training tomorrow. As soon as that was done, Murasakibara's snore filled the room. Everyone sighed. "With his and Aomine's snore, we are not going to get any sleep at all." Midorima said remembering those gruesome sleepless night. Aomine was about to argue but Akashi cut him off "You do snore Daiki, so don't start arguing with Shintarou." Aomine grumbled.

"Ano" a small voice called out. It was a miracles anyone heard it. Kuroko showed a bunch of earmuffs. "I brought these for people who would have Murasakibara-kun as roommates." Kuroko said. Kise hugged Kuroko and took one. Aomine took his with a "Thanks Tetsu" Midorima was next. "What about Aomine?" he asked Kuroko. "He isn't as bad as Murasakibara-kun." Midorima nodded and took his. Lastly Akashi took his with a small smile and polite "Thank you." With that everyone went to sleep.

The Next Morning:

Kasamatsu walked into the cafeteria and noticed that everyone was sitting with people from other teams. He shrugged and took sat in the table with Otsubo and Imayoshi. Hyuga came and served them breakfast. Otsubo gave a sheepish smile "You know…as seniors I can't help but feel bad about having our juniors do all the work." Hyuga waved it off. "It's no big deal. Just make sure to enjoy the meal since everyone in my team worked so hard for it."

In another side of the cafeteria, Himuro and Takao insisted on helping out. They served the breakfast so that Kagami and Mitobe can just focus on the kitchen. Kiyoshi was serving his fellow generals. "So good." Kotaro said as Nebuya kept on eating. "Thanks Kiyoshi!" Kiyoshi smiled.

"As much as I am happy with your serving Teppei-chan" Reo said "I wish it was Junpei-chan serving me." Hyuga shuddered on the other side. Kiyoshi laughed. "I'll ask Hyuga to do it next time." Reo batted his eyelashes. "Please do" (A/N: Poor Junpei-chan)

On another side, the Kiseki no Sedai were sitting together, they served themselves. Akashi took an extra plate of food much to everyone's confusion.

When Seirin sat down for their meals, the plate was already ready for them thanks to the other members of the table. It turns out the extra plate of food that Akashi took was for Kuroko. Kuroko barely ate a tenth when he put down his fork. So Akashi took the fork and started stuffing Kuroko's mouth with the rest of the food on his plate. Everyone else was either amused or staring in disbelief at the scene. Once Kuroko's plate was clear, Akashi gave Kuroko a glass of milk to drink. Once Kuroko finished his meal, Akashi patted his head "Good boy." Kuroko pouted while everyone else either laughed or shook their head in disbelief.

After breakfast, everyone had a half an hour break to digest the food. Once that was done, everyone head for the gym. Riko smiled "I hope everyone had some good sleep and food, because everyone is now going to play tag in the forest." Seirin looked at one another while the other teams were bemused. "Fartlek training?" Hyuga asked. Riko smiled. "That's right! So I'll leave Hyuga-kun to explain what we are doing."

After that, Hyuga explained what had to be done for the training. Once that was done. Training began at 9:30 a.m. everyone started practicing. It continued until 11:00 a.m. When it was 11:15 a.m. the coaches ask what everyone saw in the disk. The team one at a time explain what they watched. The coaches were surprised and curious but they still had work to do. The coach told them to continue watching until lunch. Once lunch was done, afternoon training will begin.

Everyone went to the lounge, excited to start the show.

 **The screen turned on with something written in the screen.**

 **I want to show you all something interesting about the Opening. It said.**

" **It was the Summer Music Fest. The biggest music concert." A voice said. "There were many amazing performances, some more shocking than the other. Here is one of the performance."**

Everyone looked at one another and shrugged. "Isn't the summer fest 6 months from now?" Kimura asked. "This is from the future." Imayoshi concluded. Everyone was amazed as they stared at the screen.

 **The screen showed Himuro standing on the stage.**

Himuro widened his eyes. "Muro-chin is going to sing?" Murasakibara asked.

 **Kasamatsu was at the guitar. Imayoshi was at the piano while Kotaro was at the drums.**

Said people blinked their eyes. How did they get involved in this?

 **The three of them started to play the music.**

For some reason, the music sounded very familiar.

 **Himuro started singing.**

Everyone gasped. "Tatsuya sang the opening!?" Kagami exclaimed. Himuro was too surprised to say anything.

 **As Himuro sang, the screen split in two. On the first screen was Himuro singing while the other was the opening sequence.**

Once it was over, everyone was silent at first. Then a large cheer was given to Himuro for a lovely performance. Himuro just blushed. "Muro-chin is a surprisingly good singer." Murasakibara said. "Thanks Atusushi" Himuro said with an embarrassed look.

 **The show began.**

DONE! WORST CHAPTER YET! The opening story is something I came up with. I know I should have done it in the second episode reaction but I forgot. Oh well. Please be kind to this Horrible Chapter.

Thank you!


	8. Chapter 8

Episode 4

Hey Guys! Hope you liked the extra chapter. I am planning to show the endings that Takao sang and the ending and opening Kuroko sang. Here is the new episode.

 **The screen started with a recap from the previous episode.**

"I like the music." Aomine said. "What's it called?" Kise asked. "The music name is" Takao snorted "Kiseki no Sedai." Everyone stared at him. "Whhhhaaaattt?" They asked. "Apparently, this music is the Kiseki no Sedai theme song." Takao said with an amused smile. Everyone laughed except the GoM. 'Since when did we get a theme song?' They thought.

 **The title screen 'Take Care of the Counter Attack' was shown.**

 **The episode started off right where the previous episode ended. Everyone was staring at Kagami in shock. "Kagami is powerless against Kise but his weakness is…" Hyuga said.**

" **Aside from passing, the weakest player on the court...Kuroko-kun?" Riko finished for him.**

"Aww, Hyuga and coach are finishing each other's lines." Izuki said "Now they just need to start dating." Koganei said. "Junpei-chan has a girlfriend?" Reo asked with a heartbroken expression. "I do not!" Hyuga exclaimed. "And don't call me by my first name!"

 **Meanwhile, Kuroko throwed Kagami an annoyed glance. "So" Kise asked as Kuroko swatted Kagami's hand away from his head.**

"Why does everyone keep touching my hair?" Kuroko asked. Kagami shrugged "Your hair is surprisingly soft, so everyone wants to touch it." Kuroko stayed away from Kagami. "What!?" Kagami exclaimed. Kuroko did not say anything.

" **It's true that Kurokocchi's style is the only one I cannot imitate." Kise said "But what does that change?" The first quarter ended.**

" **It changes everything." Kagami said "We are going to bring you to tears in the second quarter."**

Kagami smirked. "Delivered and done!" Kise grumbled "I'll get you back." Meanwhile Midorima was thinking. 'Wasn't Kuroko injured in this game? How did that happen?' He came at the last minutes of the game so he only saw Seirin's victory.

" **An eight point difference...Seirin is not that bad." Kaijou's coach was lecturing the team but Kise wasn't paying attention.**

"Thinking what Kagami meant?" Moriyama asked.

Kise nodded. His mind went back to the practice game. He kept going through what happened in the game until he remembered a certain incident. Kise paled. 'Oh God!' he thought 'I didn't even apologized!' KIse cursed himself for being so ill-mannered. He paled some more realizing it was going to show that scene. 'They are going to murder me.' Kise thought thinking about his former teammates.

 **The scene switched to Seirin. "I see…" Riko said "Yes, that could work." Riko turned to Kagami. "Looks like you calmed down, Kagami-kun."**

" **But I was always…" Kagami tried to argue**

" **You were really pissed." Hyuga and Izuki argued back.**

Everyone laughed while Hyuga asked Kagami "Seriously, how the hell do you not know that you were angry?" Kagami grumbled.

 **"But Kuroko-kun and Kagami-kun, your coordination will be key." Riko said. "Can you do it?"**

 **Kagami gave Kuroko a weary look "Well...maybe." Kuroko jabbed Kagami at the side.**

"Why do you keep hitting me!?" Kagami yelled at Kuroko. Kuroko looked at Kagami "They said hitting someone in the head makes them stop being idiotic."

"THAT IS NOT TRUE! IT DESTROYS BRAIN CELLS!" Kagami howled. Kuroko gave a blank look. "Don't worry, in order to make sure you don't lose the little brain cells that you have, I hit your upper body instead." Kagami looked ready to kill while everyone else laughed.

" **You bastard" Kagami gasped painfully. "Where did that come from?"**

" **You want to beat Kise-kun, right?" Kuroko said.**

 **Kagami looked at Kuroko and he jabbed Kuroko back.**

"That hurts" Kuroko said. Murasakibara frowned "Kaga-chin don't hurt Kuro-chin or I'll crush you." Kagami looked away muttering something.

" **Of course I do." Kagami said. Kuroko staggered.**

" **Well then…" Riko said as the second quarter was about to start. "Take care of the counter attack." The audience started cheering for Kaijou.**

"We definitely did not have the home advantage." Furihata said with a bemused smile.

" **Go, Get them, Go and Get them Seirin." The freshmen trio cheered for their team.**

"I like their cheer better." All the other teams except the captains said. The captains sighed "Mind if we borrowed it?" They asked Seirin simultaneously. "Nope" Seirin said.

 **Kise got the ball and scored. Hyuga followed with a score for Seirin and then Kise again.**

' **Kaijou's defense is still man to man' Hyuga thought. He passed the ball to Izuki, who passed it to Kagami. "Something's changed, right?" Kise asked Kagami.**

 **Kise tried to figure out what Kagami's next move would be. All of a sudden, Kagami passed the ball behind him to Kuroko who passed the ball to Kagami. 'He's coordinating with Kurokocchi!' Kise was shocked. Kagami took the ball and dunked it.**

"The deadly duo's first play together." Wakamatsu said "What a nostalgic memory." Hyuga agreed.

 **Everyone was amazed. "Yes" Riko said**

" **Nice shot" Tsuchida said. Kagami passed the ball to Kuroko again. 'It won't work this time!' Kise thought. But instead of passing the ball to Kagami, Kuroko passed it to Hyuga. Hyuga scored a three pointer. "Have you changed your minds?" Hyuga smugly said to the first years who ignored him.**

Kiyoshi and some others laughed while Hyuga glared at them.

" **No 4 is really going at it." Kobori said.**

" **We should be more worried about Kagami. He and Kuroko started passing to one another." Kasamatsu said**

" **They are just passing to one another. Does it really make that big of a difference?"**

"It changes everything." The smart people said.

" **It changes everything, idiot." Kasamatsu said. He explained how Kuroko's and Kagami's style were separate attack patterns left only two options but by combining them it gave Seirin a lot more attacking options.**

' **Kise can't copy Kuroko-kun, the linchpin of the play.' Riko thought as the screen showed the light and shadow pair. 'Kuroko-kun and Kagami-kun with the two of them we…' Kuroko missed Kagami's pass. '...can probably make it.'**

Everyone laughed while Kuroko and Kagami shrugged. "It was our first time." Kagami said "You can't expect us to be perfect from the get go."

 **The screen showed Kise who was out of breath. "Kurokocchi" he said.**

 **Kuroko looked at Kise. "Kise-kun is strong." Kuroko said "I am powerless against you and Kagami-kun can't stop you. But with the two of us…" the screen showed the two of them standing next to one another. "We have a fighting chance."**

"I'm always amazed at how you can do that." Izuki said to Kuroko. Kuroko blinked. "Do what?" Izuki pointed at the screen. "Turn what looks like agreeing with the opponent to a down right challenge."

" **You really changed Kurokocchi" Kise said "We never played basketball like this in Teikou, but…"**

"Obviously." Hyuga said "Teikou is about individual growth, we are all about teamwork." The GoM were now certain that Kuroko told them _everything_ that happened in middle school.

" **...you still can't stop me. I will still win." Kise finished.**

" **It's true I can't copy your coordination, but since you'll lose your effectiveness in 40 minutes." Kise got the ball. "You'll lose in the second half."**

Everyone leaned in their seats. For some reason, they had a feeling that something interesting was going to happen.

" **Not so fast" Kagami smirked. The screen showed Kuroko guarding Kise.**

"Now there is something I never thought I would do." Kuroko said.

 **"Kuroko on Kise?" Kasamatsu was confused. The spectators speculated that Kuroko doesn't stand a chance.**

"Of course I don't." Kuroko said "But that isn't the reason why I was marking him."

 **"I never dreamed we'd play together like this, Kurokocchi." Kise said.**

" **Neither did I" Kuroko replied.**

" **I don't know what you are trying to do but you cannot stop me." Kise moved past Kuroko. Kagami moved in front of Kise.**

" **Wrong" he said. "We are not trying to stop you."**

" **We are taking the ball." Riko said triumphantly. Kuroko did a back tip to Kise.**

' **What!' Kise thought 'They took advantage of the second I hesitated.'**

" **It doesn't matter how amazingly you play against us." Kagami said The ball went to Izuki who took it to the other side. "We're trying to let you through."**

"Not bad" everyone said.

" **Damn" Kasamatsu cursed "A simple double team would've been better."**

' **Not even Kise can react in time to an invisible guy coming up from behind.' Riko thought**

" **I just won't run by you, then." Kise said "No one said I can't shoot a three pointer." Kagami used Kuroko's head as a leverage and smacked the ball away from Kise.**

"You have good enough power and balance to do that jump by yourself." Kuroko told Kagami. "So why are using my head as a leverage?" Kagami shrugged and then smirked when Kuroko looked away.

' **They got me' Kise thought 'Kurokocchi covering the bottom while Kagami takes care of the top.'**

"Ryouta's been shut down." Akashi said "I feel bad for you Kise." Aomine smiled "This was probably brutal for you to take." Kise twitched "We'll see whose laughing at the Winter Cup, Aominecchi." 

' **An outside shot takes takes too much movement.' Kasamatsu observed 'Kuroko's the one that's making it happen.' The scene showed Kuroko looking annoyed once again at his hair being touched. 'He's the most worthless guy on the court and he can't do anything by himself but I don't believe this.'**

"Kuro chin that's not fair." Murasakibara said pouting. Kuroko gave him a confused look. "You let Kaga-chin touch your hair twice." Kuroko sighed 

" **Fast break" Kagami said. Kise tried to catch up to him but in the process he smacked Kuroko. Kuroko gasped as he collapsed on the floor. Kise looked back in surprise. Everyone gasped as Kuroko had blood running down his face.**

Kise flinched. That hit seems a whole lot more worse than he remembered. Meanwhile the room was deadly quiet. The teams were looking at their respective miracle member. They were quiet. So quiet that it was downright creepy. Finally, Aomine broke the silence. "Kise" he said in a low voice. Kise flinched again. Aomine ignored the flinch and said "You hit Tetsu." Everyone except GoM felt extremely sorry for the blond unfortunately none of them wanted to face the wrath of the GoM.

"I...It was...I didn't...I'm sorry Kurokocchi" Kise finally said. Kuroko was about to say that it's fine but Midorima interrupted him. "Do you realize how serious of an injury you implicated Kise?" Midorima was trying to keep his voice calm. "A wound like that can cause a concussion. And considering Kuroko's physicality, I wouldn't have been surprised if he lost his conscious."

"I didn't mean to. You guys know that I care too much about Kurokocchi to do something like that." Kise wailed. "Kise-chin hurt Kuro-chin. So I'm going to crush you" Murasakibara said. Thankfully Kise was spared by a loud brass sound. Everyone turned to look. Kuroko was holding brass symbols in his hands.

"Where did you get that?" Kagami asked. "Aquarius's lucky item for the day according to Oha asa." Kuroko said. Everyone gave a blanked look except Midorima who looked pleasantly surprised. "YOU ACTUALLY LISTEN TO THAT STUFF!?" Everyone simultaneously exclaimed.

Kuroko blinked "Occasionally, but getting back to the topic." He turned to look at the GoM. "The injury is all in the past. Basketball is known to be a rough sport. I'm fine and we all know Kise-kun would never dream of hurting me so please drop the matter." Akashi sighed "Fine. But Ryouta will stay away from Tetsuya for the rest of the episode." Kise weakly nodded. Everyone calmed down after that but Aomine was grumbling. Kuroko sensed his former light's agitation so he decided to sit next to him.

Immediately he was given a bone crushing hug by Momoi. Aomine acknowledged his presence by slightly tapping Kuroko's hand. The other Miracles except Kise went up to him and checked if there was any scar from the injury. Kuroko sighed 'Sometimes they are a bit too much.'

Everyone else blinked. The GoM sure worry about their 6th man.

"I'm curious to see what will happen now." Akashi said "If Seirin is stern enough they will not be letting Tetsuya play for the rest of the game." Midorima frowned. Kuroko clearly _played_ at the end of the game. He sighed feeling a headache coming along.

 **Hyuga ran over to Kuroko. "Are you alright?"**

 **"I feel lightheaded." Kuroko said. Riko was asking for a first aid kit. Kagami went over to him "Are you okay?"**

" **I'm fine." Kuroko said .**

"No you are not." Midorima said "You look like you are going to fall over."

 **True to Midorima's word, Kuroko fell over.**

'I knew it.' Midorima thought.

" **You're finished." Kasamatsu said "It's not what should have happened but without the first year duo, the difference will only grow. Kise was staring at Kuroko with shock, guilt and sadness.**

" **What will we do?"**

" **Kuroko-kun can't play anymore." Riko said "We'll have to make do with the members we got."**

" **Make do?"**

 **Riko told them how the second years will now be focusing on attack while the Kagami will focus on stopping Kise. "Are you sure that will work?" Kagami asked.**

" **It's fine. Have some faith." Hyuga said**

" **But…"**

" **I said it's fine. Listen to your senpai or I'll kill you." Hyuga said with a scary smile.**

Those that were not aware of Hyuga's clutch mode gave him a weary look. Finally Takao found his voice. "Geez, is it mandatory for all captain to be scary or something?"

"Make that be scary or look scary." Fukai said "I mean our captain looks scary but he's just pathetic."

"So mean!" Okamura wailed. 'Oh great' Everyone thought 'A gorilla version of Kise.'

 **Kagami looks taken aback. "First years should show more respect towards their senpai." Hyuga muttered.**

All the seniors agreed.

" **Get on your knees!" Hyuga yelled the last bit**

Hyuga blushed a little while Kiyoshi laughed. It's always more entertaining when Hyuga is in clutch time.

" **You're showing your true colors, Captain." Izuki said. He turned to look at Kagami. "Don't worry. He is always like this during clutch time. When he speaks his mind, he won't miss many of his shots. Leave the offense to him and defend like your life depends on it."**

"That's our point guard for you." Koganei said. Izuki gasped "A point guard's job is to point. Kitakore!" Hyuga hit him hard on the head while everyone else gave a groan. Kotaro was laughing and everyone in Rakuzan wondered if the rumors about him being dropped as a baby were true.

 **The game resumed with Koganei switching in for Kuroko. Hyuga went for a shot. "He's usually a normal guy but when he gets going, he's amazing and scary. He's multiple personality clutch shooter Hyuga Junpei." The scene shows Hyuga's status.**

"We're getting our introduction now!?" Hyuga exclaimed "When we are already 4 goddamn episodes into this thing!"

" **Calm and collected, he never loses his cool" the screen showed Izuki next. "He may seem cool and collected but he has a sense of humor. He's Izuki Shun." Izuki did a pun. "Oh crap! I forgot to write it down."**

Izuki made sure to write down the pun his past self did. He made it a goal to write down all the puns he had missed in the previous year.

" **The hardworking unsung hero! A man whose voice no one has heard. He's Mitobe Rinnosuke." The screen showed Mitobe's stats.**

Mitobe smiled and bowed in silence. Everyone else followed with an equally quiet bow.

" **He can do everything and nothing!" The screen showed Koganei. "A jack of all trades and master of none, Koganei Shinji." Koganei cried crocodile tears.**

" **So mean!"**

"I really hope that name changes in the future." Koganei said.

" **Unfortunately everyone of them never gives up!"**

'Don't we know it.' All of Seirin's opponent thought. "If we gave up, we wouldn't win half the matches that we did." Izuki said. "How the hell did you keep your spirit?" Miyaji asked. Hyuga shrugged "Stubbornness and Kuroko." Everyone understood the stubbornness part but...Kuroko!? Izuki waved at the screen. "Watch and you'll see."

 **The screen changed to the streets where a rear cart was driving through the road. A kid was curiously watching it go.**

Takao and Midorima blinked. It's showing this as well!?

" **Dammit, we are supposed to trade at the signal." Takao said.**

Everyone blinked. "Where are you going Mido-chin?" Murasakibara asked. Midorima pushed his glasses up. "To see Kise's and Kuroko's practice game." Kagami blinked. "You were there!?" Kuroko nodded "Kise-kun told me Midorima-kun came to watch after the match." Kagami looked at his partner. "And you didn't tell me...why!?" Kuroko shrugged "Didn't seem important."

" **You haven't pedaled once!"**

Kuroko gave Takao a sympathetic nod. "Midorima-kun is quiet the slave driver isn't he?" Takao nodded with teary eyes. Finally! Somebody understands him!

" **Of course I haven't" Midorima said drinking his favorite drink. "Today's Oha-asa predicted the greatest of days for cancers like me."**

" **What does that have to do with anything!?"**

Everyone except Midorima was thinking the same thing.

" **Anyway, if we are coming all the way out here to see a practice game, you're old teammates better be worth it!"**

" **It's the invisible man and the copycat."**

"We have names you know." Kise and Kuroko said at the same time.

" **Are they good?"**

"They are terrifying." Everyone who has faced them had said.

" **Hurry up or the game will be over." Midorima said completely ignoring the question.**

" **It's your fault for reading horoscopes!"**

 **Back to the game...Kaijou and Seirin were still going fiercely at it. 'They are not as good without Kuroko.' Kasamatsu thought. 'But their offensive team isn't bad. They are putting No. 4's shooting ability to good use.' Hyuga and Seirin were tired.**

' **Just as I thought this isn't easy.' Hyuga thought. 'On top of that, without Kuroko we lost power.'**

" **They don't have energy for plays after the first half's high pace." Riko said "If we only had Kuroko-kun with us."**

"Don't let Kurokocchi/Kuro-chin/Tetsu/Kuroko/Tetsuya hear you say that." The GoM said simultaneously. "He'll get up and go without a second thought." Aomine added.

" **Very well" Kuroko said getting up. "Good Morning. I'll be going then."**

GoM sighed while Aomine karate chop Kuroko on the head. Kuroko grabbed his head in pain "That hurts"

" **Wait" Riko said stopping Kuroko. "What are you talking about?"**

" **But you told me to go."**

" **I didn't tell you to do that. It just slipped out."**

" **Then, I'll be going."**

Everyone gave a blank look. "Pretty stubborn...isn't he?" Himuro said. Everyone agreed. The GoM snorted "You haven't seen _anything_ yet."

" **If I can change anything by going out there then please let." Kuroko said. "Besides, I promised to be Kagami-kun's shadow."**

Kagami smiled while Aomine frowned. Kuroko looked at Aomine with a questioning look.

 **Riko sighed. "Fine. But I'm switching you out if there is any trouble."**

Akashi grumbled "She needs to more stricter when it comes to Tetsuya."

 **Kagami looked at Kuroko as he entered the court. "Let's go." Kagami said. The opening song started to play as the match continued with Kuroko now in the game.**

Takao gave a cheeky smile. "It's Himuro-kun's song." Himuro blushed as he gave Takao a glare.

 **Kuroko was playing with full force. "We were just getting used to him." Kasamatsu said. "But he's back with full power. It must be because he stayed out of the last two quarters." The score was 80-82 Kaijou's favor.**

" **Seirin's catching up."**

 **To add the finishing blow, Hyuga went for another shot. "Seriously!" The scene showed Riko smiling as the ball went in. Hyuga gave a smirk. "They are tied!"**

"What a lovely finishing touch." Wakamatsu said. "Yes" Imayoshi agreed. "It's looks like something that I would do."

 **The screen showed Kaijou's shocked face while Seirin cheered. "We are tied?" Kise said in shock. He chuckled at the thought. All of a sudden, Kise had a very fierce look.**

Everyone shuddered. If that look said anything, it was that Kise is definately a member of the Kiseki no Sedai.

 **Kuroko and Kagami looked at Kise because they sensed his deadly aura. Kasamatsu passed the ball to Kise who zoomed past Kuroko. Kuroko went for a back tip but Kise avoided it and dunked the ball in.**

Miyaji whistled. "That was impressive." Nebuya said.

 **Kagami was shocked 'He's even stronger!?'**

" **I won't lose." Kise said as if he was in a trance. "Not even to Kurokocchi."**

"He looks like he's in the Zone." Kagami said. "Kise is probably at the gate." Aomine agreed. 'Zone huh' Kise thought 'I wonder if I'll ever achieve that.'

" **This isn't good." Hyuga said "Get ready everyone. It's gonna be like the first quarter all over again. A continuous back and forth run and gun game!"**

Everyone went even closer to the edge of the seat.

 **The scene showed the game continuing at a fierce pace with both sides cheering and giving advice to their respective team. The scene showed Kagami dunking and Kise making a shot. Then the scene showed the ball going into the net one at a time. The scene showed that with only 20 seconds left both team were tied with 98 points.**

" **These resilient bastards." Kasamatsu said.**

"Thank you for the compliment" Seirin said.

" **Kagami-kun" Kuroko called out "If we do get the ball, there is one more thing we can do that Kise-kun cannot copy…"**

"Buzzer beaters." Kise grumbled underneath his breath.

" **...it's a simple strategy that we can only do once." Kuroko said.**

" **You can't just defend. Take the ball." Riko yelled because they had less than 10 seconds remaining. Kasamatsu was aiming for the finishing shot but Kagami blocked it.**

"Good job Kagami." Kiyoshi said.

 **Hyuga threw the ball to the other side of the court. "Don't let them through." Kasamatsu said. Kise came in front of Kagami-who had the ball-and Kuroko. Kagami passed the ball to Kuroko.**

' **Kurokocchi can't shot so he'll definitely pass the ball back to Kagami.' Kise thought. But Kuroko shot the ball to the neat.**

Everyone had a good idea what's going to happen.

 **Everyone stared with only 2 seconds left. "No!" Kasamatsu said "It's an alley-oop." Kagami jumped to dunk the ball in. Kise jumped to stop him. But Kagami kept on going higher much to Kise's shock. 'He's still climbing!? How far can he go?'**

"Very far" everyone said.

' **He jumped first but I'm falling first.' Kise thought. 'How can you be in the air for so long?'**

" **I don't need you to return the favor." Kagami said. The scene flashed back to Kuroko talking to Kagami.**

" **We just need to score a buzzer beater." Kuroko said.**

" **Because this ends now!" Kagami said jamming the ball into the hoop. The final game whistle was blown.**

Seirin gave a small cheer for their victory while everyone gave a small sigh. "That was a good game." Imayoshi said. "You guys played well." Otsubo told Kaijou and Seirin. "Thank you" the captains of the two teams said.

 **The score was 100-98 Seirin. The screen went black.**

 **There screen showed a picture of Kise and Kuroko. Kise had his arm around Kuroko's stomach and was holding him up while holding a basketball on his other hand. Kuroko was looking at Kise with a clear surprised expression.**

Kise and Kuroko blinked. 'How did they get their hands on this picture?'

Meanwhile everyone else except GoM was thinking 'Maybe the rumors of them being gay aren't that far off.' Akashi spoke "I think it's time that Seirin prepares lunch for us and I also need to talk to my former teammates." He left the room. The remaining GoM followed after him while Seirin went to get lunch.

Done! Right now I have a big headache. I can't even spell properly. Hope you like the chapter. Next update is after I update my second story...Closure. Go and check it out if you like. R&R please. Btw both this and my second story are un-betaed.


	9. Chapter 9

Episode 5

Hey guys! Did you enjoy the last chapter? I felt like the reaction part on Kise hitting Kuroko was a little lacking. Anyway here is the next episode...Hopefully. Enjoy! Also I decided to respond to reviews now so...HURRAY!

Some shout out to reviews!

Yinyang555: Thank you! I hope you like this chapter.

Lock on Lockon: Thank you so much for enjoying my story!

Kuroshirouryuu: Read and find out :P

On to the main story now!

Everyone else who was still in the room sat in awkward silence. "Anyone curious about the last picture?" Takao asked. Everyone put their hands up simultaneously. "I bet the GoM are questioning Kise about the picture right now." Kasamatsu said.

Takao smirked "Let's spy on them." Everyone rejected the idea. "Why not?" Takao pouted "Shin-chan, Aomine and Kise are either too afraid or too stupid to do something to Otsubo-senpai, Imayoshi-san and Kasamatsu-san. Murasakibara wouldn't dream of hurting Himuro because of all the treats Himuro gives him. As for Akashi, he is not a psycho any more and respects you all as a senpai. So I think it's pretty safe."

After much debate, they agreed to spy on the GoM. At the end, they send Himuro, Kasamatsu, Takao, Imayoshi and Mayuzumi to spy on them. Everyone of the people in the group sighed except Takao who smiled triumphantly. They went out to search for the rainbow group. Once they found them, they hid in a nearby tree.

The GoM all looked at Kise. After a moment of silence, Akashi spoke "Well Ryouta, care to explain the picture." Kise gave a nervous laugh before he started explaining where the picture came from.

 _Flashback_

It was a few days before the Winter Cup. Kise called on the phone Kuroko like always and asked him if he wanted to hang out with him. Kuroko agreed since he had nothing better to do. On the day of the gathering…

Kise was waiting at the spot he agreed to meet Kuroko. He was wearing a disguise so that way none of his fans would bother him and waiting for Kuroko. "Kise-kun." a small voice came out of nowhere, shocking Kise. Kise turned and saw Kuroko. Kise gave a wide smile and hugged Kuroko. "What do you want to do Kurokocchi?" Kise asked.

Before Kuroko could answer, Kise's phone rang. Kise answered his phone. He looked upset after he finished the call. "I'm sorry Kurokocchi." He said. "But there is an emergency at the agency and they want me to do a shoot for them." Kise was upset that he couldn't hang out with Kuroko but Kuroko surprised him by asking "Can I come and watch?"

Kise was silent at first but then he gave a wide smile. "Sure! And as thanks I will give you two vanilla milkshakes for the next month." Kuroko gave a small smile and nodded.

When they got to the studio, Kise introduced Kuroko to the crew. They allowed Kuroko to watch since he seemed very quiet. As Kise started to work, a woman with a vibrant hair color came up to him. "Wanna help me with something?" She winked at Kuroko. Kuroko blinked but nodded.

After Kise was done, the cameraman whispered something in his ear. "EHHH!?" Kise was shocked for some reason. Kuroko came to meet Kise. He was wearing fancier clothes that looked really nice on him. The vibrant hair color woman pushed Kuroko towards Kise. "It's a rare occasion for Kise to bring friends so we are taking a picture to commemorate this day."

The set crew gave Kise a basketball and as if on cue, Kise lift Kuroko up and the cameraman took the picture. Kise was amazed at how light and soft Kuroko was. Meanwhile Kuroko wondered what's happening as he looks at Kise in shock. After that, Kise Kise gave Kuroko two vanilla milkshakes and they went home. Overall it was a fun day.

 _Present Time_

There was silence among the GoM. Finally, Akashi spoke "Ryouta" Kise flinched at Akashi's tone. "You are to stay away from Tetsuya for the remainder of the two episodes." Akashi walked away to go back to the room. He stopped halfway for some reason. "I hope this will quench everyone's curiosity." Takao peeked through his hiding spot. "Yep" he said with a big smile. Midorima face-palmed.

After that, Seirin served lunch and everyone got back to watching the remaining two episodes.

 **The episode continued from where Kagami dunked the buzzer beater. It showed everyone's reaction. The screen changed to show the title "Your Basketball."**

"Who?" some people asked. Himuro smiled. "You guys sounded like owls." Izuki had an idea "The owl says who." Hyuga hit Izuki in the head.

 **Kagami looked at the scoreboard. The final score was 100-98 in Seirin's favor. "All right!" Kagami cheered. Music started playing as the Seirin's bench player went to join the cheer. Riko gave them a thumbs up.**

 **Hyuga gave a surprised chuckle "I can't believe we won." As he, Izuki and Mitobe returned the thumbs up. The screen showed Kuroko who was exhausted but was smiling at his team's victory.**

 **Meanwhile, Kaijou sighed in resignation. Kise was still surprised "I lost."**

Kise grimaced. The bitter feeling of defeat is not such as an easy feeling to forget or accept.

' **For the first time in my life, I…' Kise started to cry. "Is Kise crying?" one of bystanders asked in amazement. "I know he must be frustrated but it's only a practice game."**

"A defeat is a defeat. It does not matter weather the game was official or not." Otsubo said. Takao gave Kise a sympathetic look. "If it makes you feel any better Kise, Shin-chan cried when we lost." Midorima yelled an angry "TAKAO!"

Himuro decided to join into the conversation as well. "Atsushi cried when we lost too." Murasakibara gave an angry pout "Muro-chin…"

Mibuchi not wanting to miss the fun said "Sei-chan cried as well when we lost." Akashi gave a small cough "Please be quiet Mibuchi-senpai."

Lastly Momoi added the finishing blow by saying "Dai-chan cried during the Seirin vs Rakuzan match." Aomine was completely flustered. "Satsuki!" he yelled. Kagami blinked "Why was Ahomine crying during the finals?" Aomine glared at Kagami. "Don't call Ahomine, Bakagami! And I am not telling you anything." Aomine would rather die than reveal the reason why he was crying.

Kise and Kuroko gave amused smiles.

 **Kasamatsu hit Kise on the back. "You idiot. You got some nerve to say you never lost before."**

The players except the GoM nodded. It's down right annoying! Akashi and the GoM shrugged. It's the truth after all.

" **You better add the word "revenge" to that empty dictionary of yours." Kise gave an assured smile. Everyone lined up and bowed. The two captains shake hands as the Kaijou's coach was filled with a dark aura.**

"We stayed away from our coach for the rest of the week." Moriyama said. Everyone gave an understanding smile. Coaches are scary, dammit!

" **Because we are at different districts, if we play again it's at the winter cup." Kasamatsu said. The scene changed and showed Riko surrounded by bright light.**

"We stayed away from ours as well." Koganei said "But for a different reason altogether." Everyone gave a wary smile. Coaches can also be very creepy.

" **We'll be there" Hyuga said "I don't want to confess my love butt naked."**

"Now I know what you meant by that." Kasamatsu said remembering a certain rooftop incident.

 **Riko was now surrounded by flowers which just creeped Hyuga and the rest of the Seirin team out.**

'That is a good reason to avoid her.' Everyone else thought.

 **Seirin left. Meanwhile, Kise was soaking his head in a water fountain outside.**

"Oh" Kise said "This is when Midorimacchi came and talked to me." He never expected Midorima of all people to show up.

" **Gemini horoscope predicted terrible luck for you." Kise was surprised "But I didn't think you would actually lose."**

" **You came to watch Midorimacchi?" The screen showed Midorima holding a green frog."**

Some people chuckled at _Midori_ ma holding a _green_ frog. Midorima pushed his glasses up. He was holding a newspaper in his hand.

" **Either way it was an unfortunate game. Even a monkey could make those dunks. It's no wonder fate didn't choose your side."**

"Pleasant as ever, huh Midorima." Aomine said satirically. Midorima glared at him.

" **I haven't seen you since middle school." Kise pouted "Long time no see."**

"Seriously Midorimacchi! We haven't seen each other in so long and the first thing you do is lecture me." Kise pouted. "Midorima-kun, it's common courtesy to always say your greeting before you say anything else." Kuroko said. "Tsk, Tsk, Tsk Shintaro." Akashi said "I expected better from you. Even Ryouta remembered his manners. If this keeps up, I might need to book manner lessons with Tetsuya for you." Midorima just silently glared at every last one them. He was counting to 50 to keep his calm. Everyone else was howling with laughter.

" **I see you haven't stopped tapping your fingers." Kise said. "Anyway, who cares if I dunk as long as it goes in."**

 **"That is why you are no good." Midorima said. He went on to explain how three pointers are better than two. And how because he tried his best, fate was always on his side.**

"I agree with the fact that if you want to win, then you should try your hardest." Kuroko said to Midorima. "But I don't believe fate is what decides winners or losers. After all, fate like the future is not a straight path. Based on the person, it can and will change. Just look at our match against Shotoku. And regards to three points vs two points, I do not need to remind you of our conversation during our match, do I? With that being said, Midorima-kun is Midorima-kun. As long as the path we choose leaves no regrets it doesn't matter what we believe."

Everyone was quiet as they absorbed what Kuroko had said. They all remember what their respective GoM member said "Our phantom sixth man doesn't say much, but when he does it's always impactful words of wisdom that you can't ignore."

Midorima said nothing because as Kuroko said it doesn't matter what one believes in as long as you follow a path you don't regret.

 **Midorima throws a towel at Kise.**

Kuroko smiled. It seems that Midorima still hasn't lost his motherly side. Takao gave an amused smile. "Shin-chan is quite the mother hen." Midorima became flustered "I am not!" Takao's smile got wider. "You sure because I heard from a little birdie that you were pretty motherly back in middle school." Midorima looked surprised "WHAT!?"

 **"I always do my best and I always keep Oha asa lucky item with me." Midorima said holding up the green frog. "By the way, today's lucky item is a toy frog."**

Aomine snorted "You just have to bring your lucky item into the conversation."

 **"That is why my shots never miss."**

 **'I'll never understand the last part.' Kise thought. 'This is the Generation of Miracles number one shooter.'**

 **"Shouldn't you be talking to Kurokocchi instead of me?" Kise asked**

 **"There's no need. B-blood like me never got along with A-blood types like him."**

"Mido-chin always got angry at Kuro-chin." Murasakibara said. "That's because he did stupid things despite having a sharp mind." Midorima huffed. Seirin grimaced. That sounds like Kuroko alright.

" **Not only do I acknowledge his style but I respect it."**

"Thank you" Kuroko told Midorima with a small smile. "But I think Midorima-kun's style is more amazing." Midorima looked away. He just can't understand Kuroko! He's always blank face with no emotions. Not to mention he always says things without hesitation that people would think he's exaggerating yet Midorima knows Kuroko is being honest. And that is what Midorima doesn't understand! How can someone like Kuroko make Midorima believe and trust him.

" **But I cannot accept his decision to attend an obscure school like Seirin."**

Seirin rolled their eyes.

" **I simply came because we'll be playing them in the district preliminaries but they are honestly not good enough."**

'We showed them' Seirin second year thought.

 **Takao came pedaling the rear cart. "Midorima, you jerk!"**

"No Shin-chan?" Kise asked Takao shrugged "I was too annoyed with him to call him Shin-chan."

" **You left me in the middle of traffic! Do you know how embarrassing that is!?"**

"Midorima-kun you shouldn't have let Takao-kun so through such humiliation." Kuroko said "It almost makes you as brutish as Aomine-kun" Midorima scowled while Aomine yelled "I'm not a brute."

" **I came to watch today. But let me apologize to you. We will not lose to Seirin, so you should give up on your revenge."**

"~That's not what I saw.~" Kise said. Midorima glared at Kise. Is it just him or is everyone having way too much fun at his expense.

 **Kise noticed Seirin was leaving. He focused on Kuroko who was touching his bandaged head. Kise looked at Kuroko with a concerned gaze.**

 **The scene changed to show Riko and Kuroko in the hospital seeing a doctor.**

"What did the doctor say?" Aomine asked "Nothing serious, just told me to have a medicine for a couple of days." Kuroko shrugged.

 **Riko informed the team that no harm was done. The team sighed in relief "That's good."**

" **Sorry for making you worry." Kuroko bowed.**

"Sometimes you are a little too polite." Koganei told Kuroko.

" **I didn't know what would happen when you fell over." Izuki said.**

" **I'm glad you're fine." Tsuchida said.**

 **With the relief from Kuroko's injury, the team celebrated their victory.**

"A little late" Moriyama told them. Hyuga shrugged "We were still worried about Kuroko's injury and we still couldn't believe we won."

" **Let's get something to eat before we go home." Izuki said**

" **What do you want?" Hyuga asked.**

" **Something cheap cause I'm broke." Koganei said.**

"We should have just let Kagami-kun pay for our meal." Kuroko said. "WHAT!?" Kagami yelled. "Yeah" Furihata said "Kagami is rich after all."

"I AM NOT!" Kagami yelled. "Kagami/Kagami-kun/Kagamicchi/Kaga-chin/Taiga/Bakagami is rich?" everyone asked. "Yep" Kiyoshi said "His dad works at a consulting firm."

"Tatsuya is more rich than me!" Kagami growled. Himuro was about to deny that but Kuroko said "That makes sense. After all, he does provide Murasakibara-kun with all of his sweets." Murasakibara nodded "Muro-chin is rich." Takao gave a mischievous smile "Alright then if all of us decides to go out and eat, we'll have Himuro and Kagami pay our bills." Everyone nodded in agreement while Himuro and Kagami looked completely aghast.

" **Me too." Kagami said.**

"From eating too much fast food." Kuroko said. "Fast food is good for you." Kagami defended his actions. Aomine for once, agreed with Kagami.

" **So am I" Kuroko said.**

"From milkshakes." Kagami shot back. "Milkshakes are good." Kuroko defended back.

" **Hold on" Riko said. Everyone turned to look at her. "How much does everyone have after transportation cost?" Everyone showed how much they have.**

"You guys are either really cheap or really poor." Hayama said. "High class privilege people have no right to talk." Seirin told him. Rakuzan is a high class school that has first class facility. In order to enter, you have to be either really rich, really talented or both. (AN: If you want proof, just look at a tumblr post on the Rakuzan's team fashion taste. It's not cheap)

" **Let's go home." Hyuga said. Riko sighed as she looked at the street. A van zoomed past but the tv slowed it down long enough for the "Free steak" ad.**

"How convenient." Miyaji said.

 **Riko's face brightened. "Hey guys" she told the depress team. "What do you say we go for steak?" The screen showed a 4 kg steak. A sign was shown saying eat the 4 kg. steak in 30 minutes and it's free, otherwise pay 10000** **yen.**

"You guys must have been really hungry or miraculously won a lottery." Wakamatsu said "Because I don't see how else you could have done it." Seirin gave a sheepish laugh "A black hole" Everyone was confused. "That's nothing." Nebuya and Aomine said.

" **What's wrong?" Riko said "Don't hold back."**

' **This is too much!' All the second years thought.**

" **What happens if we can't eat all this?" Hyuga asked with a weary look.**

" **What?" Riko said "Why do I make you run everyday?"**

"Isn't it for basketball?" Everyone except for Seirin asked

 **The window behind Riko showed a guy running way but the chef was chasing him with a frying pan.**

"I'm guessing that is what would have happened to us." Izuki whispered to Hyuga as everyone chuckled.

' **For basketball' the juniors thought. The scene changed to show the Seirin team eating the stake.**

' **I should have known.' Hyuga thought 'That's how she always is.'**

"Does Junpei-chan and your coach know each other?" Reo asked Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi nodded "They went to the same schools in middle school and were good friends."

" **The steak is steakilicous." Izuki said.**

 **Koganei choked "That stuff is really annoying right now."**

Everyone agreed except Kotaro who didn't see what was wrong with his joke.

" **Excuse me." Kuroko said.**

" **What's wrong?" Hyuga asked "Do you need water?"**

"He's done eating." The GoM said. "He barely ate anything!" Those that didn't know Kuroko's appetite exclaimed.

" **I give up." Kuroko said.**

" **Kuroko!" a loud yell could be heard outside of the shop.**

Everyone laughed.

 **The scene showed the Seirin team completely exhausted from eating. 'I'm dead' Hyuga said.**

" **This is delicious." Kagami said "Maybe I'll have some more." Hyuga looked at Kagami. Kagami saw that everyone did not finish their steak. "If you're not going to have it, can I eat it?"**

' **His stuffing his cheeks like a squirrel.' the Seirin team thought.**

'Ah...a black hole.' Everyone realized what Seirin meant. Himuro sighed 'As expected of Taiga.'

" **Save the trouble and bring them over here." Kagami said.**

'He's another Murasakibara/Nebuya/Aomine.' the Yosen, Rakuzan and Touou team thought.

" **Kagami, thank you." The Seirin team said.**

 **The scene changed to Kuroko leaving the restaurant.**

"You should tell us when you go off like that." Hyuga told Kuroko. "I'm sorry." Kuroko gave a polite bow.

 **He looked up to notice Kise waiting for him.**

"How did you know where we were?" Kagami asked Kise. Kise gave a sheepish laugh "I followed you." Everyone gave him a blank look. "What!?" Kise asked.

" **Kise-kun?"**

" **Do you have a minute to talk?" Kise asked**

" **Thanks for the food!" Riko said**

" **Yeah and don't come back."**

Everyone laughed.

" **I think I ate too much." Kagami said**

" **You really are a monster." Hyuga told him**

" **But you saved us." Koganei said.**

" **Alright, let's go home." Riko said "Is everyone here?"**

" **Where's Kuroko?" Hyuga asked.**

" **I'm sure he's at the back like always." Everyone turned to look but there was no one there. 'He's not there' the team sighed.**

Aomine snorted "Tetsu used to do that all the time during Teikou. The number of times it would blow up Midorima's casket."

"That's because he knows that it is common courtesy to tell us if he is going somewhere." Midorima said.

"Honestly you made us so worried." Hyuga said.

"I'm sorry." Kuroko bowed.

" **It's been awhile since we talked like this." Kise said "How's your injury?"**

" **I'm fine" Kuroko said. Kise sat on top of the leaning part of a bench in a park.**

" **By the way, I saw Midorimacchi." Kuroko blinked in surprise.**

" **Honestly, I don't get along very well with him." Kuroko said warily.**

"It's your fault for most of the time." Midorima told Kuroko. Kuroko thought for a minute. "It is, isn't it?" he said blankly which caused Midorima's eyebrows to twitch.

 **Kise chuckled "Now that you mention it, you're right."**

"The fights between Shintarou and Tetsuya was always amusing." Akashi said. The rest of the GoM except Midorima and Kuroko nodded. "Glad to see you were having fun at our expense." Midorima and Kuroko said simultaneously.

" **That left hand of his no joke. Especially on good days for Cancer."**

"You know, this conversation makes me think that your next opponent is Midorima...which is actually true." Wakamatsu said. 'What a coincidence' Seirin thought.

" **Yes"**

" **Seems like he came today to watch today's game. Anyway...first you turn me down and then I lose the game. Everything is going wrong in my life right now." Kise said as he balanced a ball on top of his head. "I didn't expect you to say yes, but I was serious." He was balancing on the top part of the bench.**

" **You'll fall over." Kuroko said.**

"Even after all this time, you still act like a mother hen to Kise." Aomine told Kuroko. Kuroko shrugged. Kise was Kuroko's first and only student, Kuroko can't help but feel protective of him. Meanwhile, Kise was smiling at Kuroko's caring attitude towards him.

" **Sorry" Kuroko said after a moment of silence.**

 **Kise came down from the bench. "I'm kidding. Anyway, I wanted to ask you for your reason." He said. "Why did you disappear right after the middle school championship game?" He tossed the ball to Kuroko who caught it.**

Kuroko flinched at the reminder of the game. Seirin was being very wary right now. Honestly, they have no idea what they would have done if it was them. Before the championship game, they continuously thought what could they have done. Coming up with no answer, they decided to put all that frustration into their effort and win the game for Kuroko.

The GoM flinched. They finally understood how sensitive that topic is for Kuroko. It's a miracle that Kuroko forgave them. They didn't even apologized yet.

 **The scene changed to Seirin. "I can't believe no one noticed him leave." Riko said. "I know he has no presence but this is ridiculous."**

" **Does Kuroko have a phone?" Koganei asked as the Seirin team were searching for him.**

" **I can't believe he'd disappear like that." Hyuga said.**

" **Let's just hurry up and find him." Riko said "Maybe I'll put him in a boston crab hold when we do."**

Kuroko shuddered. Everyone made a note to never make Riko angry.

 **Hyuga twitched. The scene jumped to Kagami who was looking around for Kuroko.**

" **Sheesh" he said. He heard voices from somewhere and looked at the direction. 'Street ball' He thought. 'It's been a while since I saw this in Japan.'**

Kagami and Himuro gave fond smiles since most of their time was spent in the street basketball court in America.

 **Kagami noticed something. On the other side of the court, Kise and Kuroko were talking.**

 **Kuroko gave a confused look. "I don't know."**

'Liar' Seirin team thought.

" **What?" Kise gave a bemused look.**

" **It's true I questioned Teikou's policy after the championship game. I felt we lacked something."**

" **Sports are all about winning." Kise said with a disbelief look.**

Kise sighed. He and the GoM realized now that sports actually meant a lot more than just winning.

" **I thought the same thing until recently." Kuroko said "So I don't know exactly what's wrong with it, but all I knew was that I hated basketball at that moment."**

Seirin and some of other players grimaced. They were all too familiar with that feeling.

" **That's why I was impressed with Kagami-kun when I first met him. He loves basketball from the bottom of his heart even though he went through hard times."**

"You don't even know me that well." Kagami told Kuroko. "So how were you able to figure that out?"

"Kagami-kun is very simple just like Aomine-kun." Kuroko said.

"What!/Don't compare to him." Kagami and Aomine said simultaneously. Kuroko tilted his head "But it's true." Everyone else just laughed.

 **Kise's eye was covered by his hair. "I don't get it."**

Kise was glad his eyes were covered. He didn't want people to notice the hurt look on his face. Kuroko knew the GoM more than them and yet it felt like Kuroko and Kagami were closer than anyone else in the GoM have ever been to Kuroko.

" **I'll say one thing though." Kise said as Kagami was coming by to meet them. Kagami hid himself when he noticed they were talking.**

"~It's bad manners to eavesdrop, Kagamicchi.~" Kise said. Kagami scowled.

 **Kise talked about how Kagami and Kuroko will part ways once Kagami reaches his full potential.**

"That's not gonna happen." Kagami said "The reason why I am where I am right now is because of this guy." He put his hand on top of Kuroko's head. Kuroko was happy with what Kagami said but he still swatted Kagami's hand away.

 **Before Kuroko could answer, Kagami came up from behind and hit him. "You bastard, why did you disappear like that?" Kagami turned to Kise. "Yo"**

 **Kise smiled. "We're you listening to us?"**

" **I sure as hell was."**

'At least he's honest.' Everyone thought.

" **What the hell were you kidnapping Kuroko for?"**

" **Huh? Who cares if I can talk to him a little bit." Kise said.**

" **We can't go home." Kagami said. "The coach won't shut up about responsibility or something." Kuroko was rubbing the part Kagami had hit.**

 **Kuroko heard something from the basketball court and looked at that direction. A bunch of guys were bullying the guys who was playing on the street court.**

"Jerks" everyone said. "Watch Tetsu go right in to stop those guys." Aomine snorted. Kise and Kagami gave each other a blank look. If only he knew…

" **Wait" Kise said with a slightly panic tone "Where's Kurokocchi?"**

 **All of a sudden Kuroko appeared, he was rolling a basketball on the tip of his finger. "That's not fair." He leaned the basketball towards one of the bully's nose. The guy stepped back in pain.**

Aomine gave a bemused look. "I was just joking!" he said. Akashi sighed "Tetsuya… how many times do I need to tell you, not to get involved in fights?" Kuroko bowed "I'm sorry."

"Kuro-chin is going to get killed someday." Murasakibara said. Kuroko bowed again "I'm sorry." Midorima's eyebrow twitched "This is exactly what I meant by doing stupid things."

"Now guys, calm down." Himuro said "That's right." Takao said "Don't forget Kise and Kagami are there." Everyone else didn't know how to react so they just gave a blank look. 'For someone so calm...the phantom sixth man...is pretty reckless.'

" **Who the hell are you?" the guy asked "Where did you come from?"**

" **This isn't basketball." Kuroko said "Besides violence is bad."**

" **What the hell is that guy doing?" Kagami said in absolute shock.**

" **Kurokocchi." Kise said. He was just as shocked as Kagami. The two of them simultaneously sighed in resignation.**

Everyone else looked equally exhausted.

 **The bullies challenged Kuroko to a basketball game. Kagami and Kise showed up at that moment. "Mind if we join?" Kise asked.**

" **What are you doing?" Kagami asked Kuroko.**

' **H-H-H-Huge!' the bullies thought.**

Everyone laughed.

" **Five on three is fine." Kagami said.**

" **What did you say!?"**

 **The game started with the trio of Kagami, Kise and Kuroko completely dominating the bullies. The game ended with the bullies lying on the ground and the trio walking away. 'Instant death' the bystanders thought.**

"Piece of cake" Kise and Kagami said while everyone else gave an amused smile.

 **The scene changed to the trio. "What were you thinking?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "Did you think you could win if it turned into a fight?"**

" **Nope." Kuroko said "They would have 100% beaten me."**

Everyone gave a blank look.

" **You bastard."**

" **Look at these guns." Kuroko said showing his muscles.**

They didn't know why but everyone laughed at the scene.

" **You don't have any!" Kagami said.**

" **Kurokocchi, you can be amazing sometimes." Kise said wearily.**

Everyone snorted.

" **I thought those guys were terrible." Kuroko said. "I justed wanted to tell them that."**

"At least think about the consequences first." Everyone told him.

" **You should have considered the consequences first." Kagami said.**

" **I forgot." Kuroko said,**

Everyone sighed.

" **Don't give me that crap!"**

" **I'm sorry"**

" **You said yourself that you would've been beaten up."**

" **Sorry"**

'Parent and Child.' Everyone thought.

 **The scene changed to Kise suddenly smiling. He picked up his bag. "I should get going." Kise said. 'I finally got to play with you, Kurokocchi.' He said with a wide smile.**

Kise smiled at the scene though he was a little embarrassed at having his inner wish heard by everyone.

 **Kuroko looked at the smile with an unreadable expression.**

 **Kise turned back to them "And don't think I forgot about my revenge, Kagamicchi."**

" **Kagamicchi!?" Kagami said in shock.**

" **Kise-kun adds -cchi to the names of the people he acknowledges." Kuroko said**

"Seriously!?" Those that didn't know exclaimed. The GoM nodded.

" **Good for you. Isn't that wonderful?"**

" **I don't want it!" Kagami yelled.**

"Well tough luck for you." The GoM said. They had to suffer through that horrendous nickname for 3 years now.

" **Don't lose in the preliminaries." Kise yelled back.**

" **Kagami-kun, did you hear my conversation with Kise-kun." Kuroko asked Kagami.**

" **About us parting ways? We don't get along in the first place." Kagami said.**

'Yeah right!" everyone yelled. "This was at the beginning!" Kagami exclaimed.

" **You're the one who said I can't do it alone. If you are right, then there is nothing to worry about. Besides you'll always stand by the light." Kuroko turned to look at Kagami. His entire body was covered by white light. "That is your basketball."**

There was a moment of silence. "Never thought Taiga could be so...deep." Himuro said. Kagami grumbled.

 **Kuroko had a thoughtful expression. "Kagami-kun, you can say deep things sometimes."**

" **Shut up!"**

Everyone laughed.

 **The two of them were leaving the park. Riko noticed Kuroko. "There you are, sheesh." she said. She tackled Kuroko and put him on a boston crab hold.**

'She's a demon.' everyone internally screamed. 'Definitely don't make her angry!'

 **Kuroko asked Kagami for help but Kagami ignored him.**

"Traitor." Kuroko said. "I value my life." Kagami said

 **The screen went blank. It showed a picture of Mitobe, Koganei and Tsuchida going shopping.**

"It's for the club." The three said.

"That's the end of this episode." Akashi said.

"What a fun episode." Imayoshi said

Done! Though I seriously felt like the story section of this is a bit lacking. Oh well! Next chapter may take a while to come. So thank you for your patience. Please R&R


	10. Chapter 10

Wow! I'm so happy! A lot people are liking my stories. They are reviewing it, favoriting it and following it. I'll continue to do my best.

Now a special shout out to those that reviewed:

Lock on Lockon: Thank you so much! =D

Kuroshiroryuu: I'm glad you enjoyed it. =)

umbreonblue: Wow you wrote a lot of reviews and suggestion. Thanks! I'll do my best to respond. I can't wait to write the reactions either. Only if time was on my side...sigh. I can't wait for him to appear either. I'll think about your suggestion.

Guest: Don't worry I will.

Oh! Before I forget...I am planning to bring in more people. Stay tuned to find out who. Now on to the main story…

Don't own KnB! (Forgot to do disclaimers, srry!)

Episode 6

 **The scene showed the last few minutes of the practice game.**

"Why is it showing this again?" Kise pouted. "Maybe whoever made this hates you for being so annoying." Aomine smirked.

 **The scene changed to Kagami sleeping.**

"Or maybe Kagami-kun was dreaming about the match." Kuroko said. "How arrogant can you get?" Aomine said. (A/N: …-_-...)

" **Huh?" Kagami said**

" **Don't "huh" me." It showed Kagami had grabbed his teacher's head.**

Everyone laughed while Kagami glared at the TV in embarrassment. "Of all the stupid things I've done, that is one thing I will never do." Aomine howled with laughter. Everyone stared at Aomine. 'He finally admits he is an idiot.'

" **How dare you sleep so shamelessly in my class? Come to the faculty office later."**

" **What?" Kagami yelled. He was annoyed for getting in trouble. There was snoring nearby. Kagami looked back and saw Kuroko was sleeping as well.**

"Kagamicchi and Kurokocchi are in the same class?" Kise asked. Kuroko nodded "We are seat neighbours."

"What a coincidence!" Takao exclaimed. "Shin-chan and I are in the same class as well."

"I'm in the same class as Atsushi." Himuro said. (A/N I don't know about Himuro and Murasakibara but Takao and Midorima are in the same class.) "We are?" Murasakibara asked. Himuro sweatdropped. "Please try to remember your classmates Atsushi." Kise gave Himuro a sympathetic smile. "If it makes you feel any better, Murasakibaracchi forgot that I was his classmate." Murasakibara stopped eating his chips. "Kise-chin and I was in the same class?" he asked Kise. The Teikou graduates gave him a blank look. Kise's eyebrow twitched. "Yes...yes we were."

Aomine shrugged "Better to forget than remember someone annoying." Kise glared at Aomine. "Don't act so high and mighty when you don't even remember Midorimacchi being in the same class as you." Aomine blinked. "He was?" All of Teikou's graduates except Murasakibara and Aomine slammed their head on the table.

' **Why didn't he get into trouble?' Kagami was even more annoyed.**

"Lack of presence." Kuroko said. 'Lucky' almost everyone thought.

 **It showed the episode title. "Let me Tell you Two things."**

"Dad" Seirin said. Everyone was confused.

 **The scene showed the Seirin members all exhausted from the practice game.**

"Come to think of it" Koganei said "We almost always fell asleep after we faced a member of the Kiseki no Sedai." Seirin nodded.

' **I'm sleepy' Hyuga thought 'I've never felt so tired after a game.'**

' **Game against Kiseki no Sedai aren't easy.' Riko thought as she made a note to increase stamina training.**

" **Now that I think about it today is that day." Riko said.**

Seirin seniors 'ahhed' as they remembered the day while Koganei filled Kiyoshi in quietly. Seirin's freshmen frowned. Everyone else wondered what are they thinking about.

" **What do you want?" Kagami and the rest of freshmen was standing in the hallway.**

" **Go buy some bread." Riko said.**

" **Huh?" Kagami said**

" **Bread?" Furihata asked,**

"Why?" everyone asked. Seirin brushed of the question "You'll see" Everyone groaned. "I don't like that answer." Takao muttered.

" **On the 27th of each month, the Seirin High Cafeteria sells a limited quantity of a special bread." Riko said.**

" **Okay" Kagami said**

" **Supposedly eating this fantastic bread will bring you great success in love, sports and anything else." Riko said.**

"It's still just a sandwich." Wakamatsu said. Seirin gave a nervous laugh on the inside. 'Just wait and see.'

" **The triple delicacy Iberian pork cutlet sandwich with caviar, foie gras and truffles. It's 2800 yen!"**

"Who the hell would want to buy that?" Aomine said "It's sounds disgusting, not to mention it's expensive!"

"If you ask me, no one" Takao said. 'Yeah...no one except the whole school.' Seirin thought.

" **It's so expensive. And there is so much in there, it must be trash."**

"My point exactly." Aomine said.

" **We beat Kaijou and practice is going well." Hyuga said "We are asking you to buy the bread and build up the momentum."**

" **But we are not the only ones who have our eyes set on it." Riko said. "It always gets a bit busier than usual."**

"A bit...Ha!" Seirin freshmen except Kuroko said. Everyone was looking at them weirdly.

" **We just have to buy bread, right?" Kagami said. "It's as easy as pie...ma'am."**

" **Here" Someone said. "We, second years will pay for it."**

'Seirin seniors are so nice.' the other school freshmen thought while they shoot a glance at their seniors. The seniors had a feeling on why their juniors were glaring at them and sighed.

" **Buy lunch for everyone else while you are there." Hyuga said. "But if you fail…" Hyuga's demeanor turned dark. "I don't need the change. Instead you can do three times as much stamina and footwork training."**

"All over a goddamn piece of bread!" Everyone exclaimed except for Seirin.

' **Scary!' The freshmen thought. 'Lunch time clutch time.'**

Everyone laughed at that while Hyuga glared at the freshmen who shifted away from their captain.

" **If you don't hurry, it'll be sold out." Izuki said.**

" **Izuki-senpai."**

" **Don't worry" Izuki reassured them "We managed to buy some bread last year." Izuki all of a sudden thought of a pun.**

"That is not even accurate!" Miyaji said.

 **The freshmen left before he finished his pun. "We'll be going." they said in unison. Mitobe looked at them with a worried expression.**

" **You worry too much." Koganei told him. "What are you, their mom?"**

" **What did you mean "a little busier?" Hyuga asked Riko.**

" **What?" Riko asked.**

The Seirin freshmen except Kuroko glared at the Riko on the screen.

" **I'm going to make this an annual tradition for first years." Riko said.**

" **Seriously?"**

 **The scene shift to the freshmen. "Are you serious?" Kagami said as he and the rest of the freshmen stared at something in amazement. The screen showed the entire school rushing in to get the rare sandwich. People were crowding, pushing and fighting to get a hold of it.**

Everyone except Seirin was shocked at what they were seeing.

"All this…" Aomine said weakly. "For a piece of bread."

" **Th-This is chaos." Kawahara said.**

" **We have to go." Kagami said. "Three times strength training and footwork will kill us."**

" **Okay I'll go first." Fukuda said "I'm not as strong as Kagami but I do have faith in my power."**

" **Don't die!"**

 **Fukuda went in but was thrown away. "You're unbelievably useless" Furi said.**

"Thanks Furi." Fukuda said with sarcasm. Furi gave a sheepish apology.

" **Now that I look at it more closely." Fukuda said "This is going to take more than a little power."**

" **Huh" Kagami said**

" **Rugby team forward, the american football lineman, sumo and weightlifting...we are supposed to pass these guys."**

"Serin sure has a lot of big guys." Miyaji said. "Though you probably can't tell by looking at the basketball team." The basketball team glared at him. Afterwards Kawahara glared t Fukuda "You couldn't say this earlier...why?" Fukuda shrugged. "Too overwhelmed."

" **Sounds interesting." Kagami said. "Let's do this." He charged into the group.**

"Don't charge in like an idiot!" Everyone said. "Situation like these requires planning, Taiga." Himuro told him.

 **He tried to move forward but was pushed back. "This is Japanese lunch time rush." Kagami said in English. There was Japanese subtitles above the screen. It translated what Kagami said. It showed the Japanese train station during rush hour.**

"So that's what you said." The freshmen trio muttered. Meanwhile everyone else was either laughing or making a blank face.

" **Kagami" Fukuda said with a blank look.**

" **You are acting American now?" Fukuda said.**

" **We gotta do this together." Kawahara said. As the three freshmen charges in only to be tossed away. They did it again only to be thrown away again and the whole scenario repeated again.**

"This is a little sad." Takao hummed in agreement.

' **This isn't easy.' The trio despaired.**

" **We gotta take our chances." Kagami said as he tossed Fukuda. "Sorry!"**

"What the hell!?" Everyone exclaimed.

 **The scene showed Kagami crowd surfing on Fukuda to get the bread.**

"That's crazy!" Everyone exclaimed. "It might be crazy enough to work." Imayoshi said.

 **Kagami was almost close to get the bread but the crowd revered the flow and they were tossed back to where they started.**

Everyone laughed. "Or not" Imayoshi said.

" **This is Japanese lunch time rush." Kagami said in english again.**

"Again!" Everyone said with a blank look while Himuro just shook his head in amusement. 'Oh Taiga.'

" **Please stop that." Kawahara said as Kuroko came behind them.**

" **Excuse me." Kuroko said catching their attention. Everyone turned to look at him. "I bought one." he said. Surely enough, there was a sandwich in his hand.**

"How?" Everyone except Seirin freshmen asked. Kuroko pointed at screen.

 **Everyone stared at the sandwich. Kagami grabbed Kuroko "What? You? How?" Kuroko explained how he got the sandwich.**

"Seriously!?" Everyone exclaimed. "Oh man!" Kise said. "If we knew Kurokocchi could use his misdirection like that, we would've let him buy all of our lunches for us." The rest of the GoM hummed in agreement.

" **Here" Kuroko said giving Kagami the sandwich. Kagami had a blank look. He turned to look at the freshmen trio. "What's wrong everyone?" he said. The trio had the same look as Kagami.**

" **Nothing." Fukuda said.**

" **As expected from the phantom sixth man for you." Kawahara said.**

Everyone laughed in agreement.

 **The scene switched back to the rooftop. "We brought them." Kawahara said. In his hand was a bag full of the special sandwich.**

"I'm surprised you guys are allowed back to the roof." Kobori said to Seirin. "We got permission after Riko promised not to do something like that again." Hyuga said. "I doubt she'll keep it." Susa with a wary look. Hyuga gave a sheepish chuckle. "I know right." Seirin simultaneously sighed.

" **Good work." Riko said. "Here's some juice."**

" **Is..this…" Kawahara said.**

" **It's fine. You guys can eat it." Izuki said.**

" **Are you sure?" Fukuda said.**

" **It's fine. Go on and eat." Hyuga said.**

'Seirin senpai's are so nice!' The other school freshmen despaired while looking at their senpais. Said senpais sighed. 'Note to self, ask Seirin for pointers on being a good senior.'

" **I guess we will take turns." Kawahara said. "Whose first?"**

" **It's gotta be Kuroko." Furi said.**

" **Thank you for the food." Kuroko took the sandwich and taste it.**

Everyone leaned forward wondering what Kuroko will say.

" **This is…" he says in surprise. "It's really delicious.**

 **The trio was shocked. "I've never seen Kuroko so happy before." Kawahara said.**

"Awww...we want to see his happy face too!" Everyone who never saw Kuroko with expression exclaimed. "It's like the camera teasing us with Kuroko's expression since they know we want to see it." Takao said.

 **The trio took a bite of the sandwich. Each one of them agreed that the sandwich is delicious.**

"It's that good." Reo asked. Seirin nodded. "Then I guess we should drop by to Seirin and try the sandwich out." Reo said. "What about the crowd?" Kotaro asked. "We can ask Chi-chan to buy the sandwich for us." Reo said. "Excuse me" Mayuzumi said. "Don't forget who is the senpai here and don't call me Chi-chan!" Reo pouted. "Then I'll ask Sei-chan." Akashi sighed.

" **I don't care what it is as long as it's big." Kagami said.**

Everyone gave Kagami a weird look. "What!?" Kagami asked defensively.

" **What are you saying?" the trio asked as they watch Kagami eat the sandwich.**

 **It was evening time now. "Captain, I copied the preliminary tournament bracket."**

"So it's finally time for the tournaments." Takao said with an excited smile. "Although it's most likely going to take a lot longer before any of GoM matches are going to be shown." Himuro sighed.

 **Hyuga explains the basics of the Inter-High to the freshmen. "That's the Inter-High" Hyuga said.**

"Nice and Simple" Imayoshi said.

" **I sort of get the picture." Kagami said. "But you're wrong about one thing. The teams are chosen… they win it!"**

Everyone nodded in agreement.

 **Everyone smiled at Kagami's determination while Kuroko just stared at him. "We've got three weeks until the Inter-High preliminaries." Hyuga said. "We fell one step short last year, but we'll definitely go this year. We'll be facing a lot of strong schools but our strongest opponent is Shutoku High."**

Shutoku gave a small cheer.

" **Last year they were in the nation's top eight. On top of that, they have recruited one of the Kiseki no Sedai." The screen showed the Shutoku team and Midorima.**

"Looks like we finally got our screen time." Miyaji said. "It only took six episodes." Takao said.

" **If we can't beat them, we won't make it to the Nationals."**

" **If we want to face them, then it will have to be at the championship game." Kagami said. "Kuroko, you know who he is, don't you?"**

" **I doubt you would believe me even if I told you." Kuroko said. "However, as Kise-kun said, the other four are on another level."**

Said four were smirking.

"You were right about not believing you." Kagami said "I mean...a guy that never missed his shots…" Kagami shook his head. 'A guy with ridiculous jumping power and who defeated said people have no right to talk.' Everyone except Kuroko thought.

" **If they've gotten better I cannot imagine how good they are." Kuroko said.**

" **Before we play Shutoku we've got to win our first game." Hyuga said. "Let's keep our head on the ball." Everyone agreed.**

" **By the way, where's coach?" Tsuchida asked.**

" **She went to observe our first opponent's practice game." Hyuga said.**

" **I'm back." Riko said. "Speak of the devi." Hyuga said. The freshmen wondered if Riko was not skipping because they opponent isn't strong.**

" **She wouldn't do that in a serious game." Hyuga said. "Are they good?" He asked turning to Riko.**

" **One of their players might give us trouble." Riko said. "We can watch the video later." She gave her cellphone to Hyuga. "Take a look at this picture."**

 **Hyuga opened the cell phone. "This is...cute" he said awkwardly. On the screen was a picture of a kitten.**

"How cute!" Momoi squealed while everyone awkwardly agreed. Midorima completely disagreed with all of them. He hates cats! "Umm...I don't think that is what your coach wanted to show you...right?" Takao asked Seirin. Seirin nodded with an amused smile.

 **Kuroko-who loves cute animals-was staring at picture so intensely that a floating star pop out of his eyes.**

"Aww" some people said while others were wondering 'Since when do stars come out of people's eyes!?' 

**Riko brushed the star away. She had her face in her hands. "Sorry the next one." Hyuga went to the next picture. He and Seirin were surprised by the picture. The picture showed a tall foreign black guy.**

" **His name is Papa Mbaye Siki. Two meters high and weighs 87 kilograms. He is a foreign student from Senegal."**

" **Senegal? He's huge! 2 meters" Hyuga said. The other seniors exclaimed their shock as well.**

"He was the tallest we saw...until we met Murasakibara." Izuki said. "How tall are you Atsushi?" Himuro asked. "Last time I checked 208 cm...I think" Murasakibara said. '208 cm! That's 2.08 m!' Everyone thought.

" **He's just big." Kagami said**

"Nothing compare to Murasakibara." Kagami said.

 **Kuroko didn't look fazed one bit. Hyuga tried to say Papa's name but he couldn't. Everyone else tried but no one got close.**

Everyone laughed at Seirin's attempt to get the name. But when they tried it...they couldn't get it right except for the smart people.

 **Riko sighed "We are not getting anywhere." She turned to Kuroko. "Kuroko-kun find a nickname for him."**

"Why me?" Kuroko asked. "You know people who loves giving nicknames" Hyuga said pointing to the GoM and Momoi.

 **Kuroko thought for a moment. "How about "Dad", then?"**

"Huh?" Almost everyone said. "Papa is English for Dad isn't it?" Kuroko asked. 'What a weird naming sense.'

"Oh" Sakurai said. "This must be the "Dad" you mentioned earlier." When he noticed everyone was staring at him, he started apologizing. Imayoshi and Wakamatsu calmed him down.

" **Where's your naming sense?" Koganei asked.**

"You asked for a name, so I gave it." Kuroko said.

 **Izuki made a pun.**

People were trying not to laugh but they had to admit that it was better than the previous ones.

 **Everyone except Kuroko was chuckling while Riko was trying to explain the game plan. "Hey, listen" Riko shouted. Everyone immediately stopped.**

Amused smiles were on a lot of people faces.

" **He's not just tall." Riko said. "His arms and legs are wide as well. More and more schools are inviting students from abroad to increase their power. Our opponent was only a middle-tier school until last year, but with the addition of a foreign student, they are a completely different team."**

" **But we can't just do nothing" Kagami said.**

" **Who said we would do anything?" Riko said. Kagami blinked in surprise.**

"What?" the other teams asked

" **Kagami-kun and Kuroko-kun, the two of you will have your own training menu starting tomorrow."**

 **The theme song started to play as glimpse of Seirin's training was shown.**

"It's Himuro's song." Takao said. "Will you please stop calling it my song!" Himuro said. "But it's Muro-chin's song." Murasakibara said. Himuro gave him a traitor face.

 **One scene showed Kagami and Kuroko sleeping in class. Clearly they did not care about school!**

Everyone laughed. "Honestly, I can understand Kagami but...Kuroko." Miyaji said. Otsubo nodded. "He's such a serious guy that it's quite shocking."

 **Along with the training, a calendar was shown to tell how much time is left until the tournament. Finally it was the day of the tournament. "The gang's all here." Riko said. It showed the Seirin team with Kagami's eye being bloodshot.**

"Again!?" The other team said with a bemused look. Aomine snorted.

" **Let's go!"**

 **Kuroko looked at Kagami. "You couldn't sleep again?"**

" **Shut up" Kagami groaned.**

Everyone laughed.

 **The scene shift to the court where Seirin and their opponent were practicing. Seirin was obviously looking out for "Dad". A loud bang could be heard. "Dad" had bang his head on the door frame.**

"I have that problem all the time." Murasakibara pouted. "It's so annoying." Everyone gave him a wary look.

" **Everyone is so short in Japan." Papa said.**

"We are not!" Everyone huffed. "Yes you are" Murasakibara said. "Shut up!" they told him.

' **He's huge and kind of...long'**

" **I'm sorry I am late" Papa told his coach in fluent Japanese.**

" **Why is that the only thing you can say fluently?" His teammate asked him.**

"Reminds me of Ryu." Aomine snorted. Sakurai immediately started apologizing profusely. All of Touou except Aomine tried to calm him down. Once they succeed, they glared at Aomine. "What?" he asked dumbly.

 **The teammate turned to Hyuga. "By the way, is it true that you defeated Kaijou?"**

" **It was just a practice game." Hyuga said.**

" **I guess the GoM isn't as strong as we thought." The teammate-who turned out to be the captain-said.**

The GoM frowned "Excuse me?"

"Don't go saying stuff about people you haven't even played." Kagami said. The GoM are his biggest rivals. Insulting them is the same as insulting him for having them as rivals.

" **The GoM lost?" Papa said. "I was brought over to defeat them. I'm disappointed they are so weak."**

Everyone except the GoM shivered. Is it just them or did the temperature in the room just dropped? Drastically!

 **Papa walked away. As he walked past Kagami, he bumped into something. He looked down and noticed it was Kuroko. "No little boy," he said as he picked Kuroko up. "Children shouldn't be on the court."**

Almost everyone had a hard time not laughing at the scene. If only Papa knew…

 **The wind lifted Kuroko's shirt to show his uniform. "You're a player?" Papa said surprise. He was still holding Kuroko.**

"Yeah and he's a good." Aomine growled. "So put him down." He and the rest of the miracles really don't like Papa.

 **Papa put Kuroko down. "They lost to a child like him?" he said. "Are all the GoM children?"**

Everyone scooted away from the GoM. Not only was the temperature in the room freezing...but now there was a dangerous aura surrounding them as well.

Akashi was especially ticked off. Not only was he called weak, he was also called a child and had his height insulted (he and Kuroko was around the same height, so an insult to Kuroko's height is an insult to his height).

"Hyuga-san" Akashi addressed Hyuga. "Y-y-yes" Hyuga stammered. "Does Papa still go to this school?" Akashi asked. Hyuga blinked. "I believe so."

"I see" Akashi said. "Sei-chan" Reo asked hesitantly "You aren't planning to visit him by any chance are you?" Akashi gave him an innocent smile. "Whatever gave you that idea, Reo?" All of Rakuzan immediately scouted away from their captain. 'The other Akashi! It's the other Akashi!' They shouted in their heads.

 **The rest of the Seirin members were trying hard to not show their laughter. Kagami didn't even bother and was laughing on the floor.**

Kuroko stared at his teammates who quickly apologized.

" **Honestly, I'm starting to get annoyed." Kuroko said. Everyone immediately shut up.**

The occupants in the room gave Seirin an amused smile. "They say that small and quiet people have quite the nasty tempers." Izuki said. "We didn't want to face the end of that temper."

"Is Kuroko scary when he is mad?" people asked Seirin and GoM. They nodded. "How do you think the ignite pass was created?" Midorima said. Everyone paled. (A/N: This would be nice one-shot to write. Sorry for interrupting)

"I take it that you will teach him a lesson he will never forget...right Tetsuya?" Akashi asked. Everyone froze. They noticed Akashi's eye was starting to change color! "I have every intention to do so Akashi-kun." Kuroko said firmly and politely. Akashi's eye turned back to red. "Good" he said with a smile. Everyone sighed!

" **You have that kind of a side as well, huh?" Kagami said wiping away a tear. "The side that hates to lose." He took off his shirt to show his uniform. "Well then I guess you should show "Dad" why you shouldn't make children mad."**

"You better" The GoM said.

 **The before game traditions were completed and the match begins. At the tip-off, Papa got the ball over Kagami. 'Seriously! Kagami lost in terms of height.' Papa passed the ball to his captain who passed it back. Papa went for the shot. Kagami jumped to stop him but due to his height Papa scored the point.**

"You could have stopped that." Wakamatsu said. "Our coach doesn't like to go all out from the begining unless we have to." Koganei said. "Not to mention our centre position is not as strong at that time compare to the Winter Cup." Tsuchida said.

" **Too easy." Papa said.**

" **Don't worry about it" Hyuga said "Let's get it back." He passed the ball to Izuki who ran down the court. Izuki passed the ball to Mitobe who passed it Hyuga. Hyuga went for a shot but he was blocked by Papa. 'He can reach that!?' Hyuga thought in disbelief.**

" **This is ridiculous." Furi said.**

" **It's not fair."**

 **Shintokyo's captain turned to Hyuga. "Are you one of those hard working guys?"**

"What kind of question is that?" Mibuchi asked "If you want to win, then you have to work hard."

" **What?"**

" **We see a lot of those. Guys saying it's not fair having a foreign player. We're not breaking any rules."**

" **Well you can have up to two off them in your team." Hyuga said**

" **Right?" the captain said. "What's wrong with getting strong players? We pass the ball and he score."**

" **I don't know about that but if that is your policy, you better not complain." Hyuga said.**

"How very diplomatic of you Hyuga." Kasamatsu said in approval of Hyuga's attitude.

" **Besides we've got our own ridiculous players." Hyuga said. "We didn't have to invite though." The screen showed Kagami and Kuroko.**

 **Mitobe's face was shown. Kagami sensing Mitobe's pressence jumped. "I'll be fine." Kagami said. Seirin was five points behind. Papa aimed for another shot but missed. Mitobe got the ball. This pattern continued for a while.**

' **His accuracy is declining.' the captain thought. 'What's going on?'**

" **He won't be able to score easily now" Riko said. "Because Kagami-kun won't let him make his plays."**

"It's about time you guys start moving." Aomine said with a yawn.

" **Even if he cannot reach, there are other ways to stop a shot." Riko said "Mitobe-kun's way"**

 **A flashback was shown. "Mitobe-kun is a veteran when it comes to defense." Riko told Kagami. The screen showed their height differences. "From now on you will practice with Mitobe-kun everyday." she said. "You'll learn how to stop someone bigger than you through him."**

" **Someone bigger?" Kagami asked.**

" **Listen up" Riko said "Blocking isn't the only way to stopping a shot. You can make them miss."**

"Did we ever try something like that?" Kise asked. "No, because it's too stressful on both opponent and on one's self. But if there is a need for it than we would definitely use it" Kasamatsu said.

 **It showed Kagami's training with Mitobe. Kagami couldn't make any shots. The present time was shown and it showed Kagami implementing what he learned from his training with Mitobe. "Don't let him do what he wants to do." Riko said. "Don't let him go where he wants to go. Force him out of his comfort zone. Pressure him so he can't shoot easily." Papa went for the shot but missed again.**

" **He missed again."**

" **This foreigner is no big deal."**

' **Shut your mouth' The captain thought 'There is a ton of pressure in the court.'**

"Only those that plays basketball can understand the amount of pressure that comes from being in the court." Otsubo said. Everyone agreed.

' **He can almost block all of his shots with his jump. Not to mention the intensity of his focus can kill.'**

"Like a tiger...right Taiga." Himuro said with a smile. Kagami scowled. He hates it when someone compares him to a Tiger. He is not a cat! When Kagami voiced his thought, Himuro said "But you're a Leo, which is a lion, which is a cat."

"Not to mention you hate dogs." Kuroko said. Midorima smirked "That would certainly explain why I don't like him since I don't like cats." Kagami glared at the three while everyone else snickered.

" **What the hell?" Papa said "I'm getting pissed."**

" **Don't let it get to you." His captain said. "He's not blocking you."**

' **This method is stressful for me as well.' Kagami thought. 'I guess I have to take him down directly.' He went up to Papa. "Hey" Kagami told him. "Let me tell you two things."**

"That's the title of the episode." Everyone said.

" **First, I'll block one of your shots in the game." Kagami said.**

" **There is no way you can do that." Papa said. "I will not lose to a team with a child in it."**

The GoM frowned. If they ever met Papa, they are going to kill him for insulting their sixth man.

" **Second…" Kagami said as he ran past Papa. Izuki passed the ball. It looked like the ball was heading for Papa. 'Lucky' he thought.**

'Idiot' Almost everyone thought.

 **Kuroko came and changed the ball course to Kagami's hand. Kagami took the ball and slammed it in. "This kid might give you some trouble." Kagami said.**

" **Could you please stop call me a kid?" Kuroko said with an annoyed look.**

Everyone laughed while Izuki rubbed Kuroko's head. Kuroko just pouted. "It's about time, Tetsu." Aomine laughed.

 **The screen went blank. It showed a picture of Hyuga and Izuki. Hyuga had a remote in his hand while Izuki was writing something down.**

"We were watching a video of our opponent match." Hyuga said. "Izuki was writing down our game plans."

"It's always nice to Captains and their vice-captains getting along." Mibuchi said. Everyone who was a captain and vice-captain hummed in agreement. Although some were more discrete than others.

"By the way, that's the end of today's quota." Akashi said. "What!?" Almost everyone screamed. "But we were in the middle of a match...again!" Takao said. "Horrible cliff hangers." Wakamatsu said.

Done! Not as good as the other two. Hope you like it anyway. Please R&R!


	11. Chapter 11

Episode 7

Hey everyone! Hope you like the last chapter! Thank you to everyone for your favorite, follows and reviews. Now it's time to response to those reviews!

Rinfantasy: I actually had no idea! Later on I checked and found out about Himuro's age and that he's Yosen's new captain (Good for him!). Oh well! I'll just stick to what I wrote.

Lock on Lockon: Yeah...the only thing Murasakibara remembers is sweets. And Aomine is just as much of a fun character to write as he is to read! The poor aho…

Umbreonblue: Glad you liked the chapter!

ImpsDream: Thank you! Like your profile pic btw

SilverSapphire34523: Same here! That guy can be a jerk but I don't want him to lose his sanity. =p

Guest: Thank you!

Now let's move on with the story.

Episode 7

Everyone decided to play a game before they head to bed. The game was like charade where people had to guess the Anime character based on a quote the character said. First off was Kise. "After all, hatred towards your mother can only get you so far. But if...you decided to curse your destiny...I will give you a hand."

"Judal from Magi." Kuroko said. Kise nodded. Everyone clapped. It sounded exactly like him.

Aomine decided to go next. "I am the bone of my sword. Steel is my body, and fire is my blood. I have created over a thousand blades; Unknown to death; Nor known to life. Have withstood pain to create many weapons. Yet those hands will never hold anything. So, as I pray - Unlimited Blade Works!"

There was a moment of silence. "Archer from Fate Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works." Kagami said. Aomine smiled. "Yeah, that quote is so badass so I decided to memorize it." Akashi sighed. "If only that happened with your studies."

Sakurai decided to got next and Takao volunteered to go with him to help Sakurai's nerve. "Good morning, Haru-chan." Takao said. "Don't call me chan." Sakurai said.

Mibuchi raised his hand. "Haru and Makoto from Free!" Everyone clapped.

Kuroko went next. "It is a poor knight indeed who slays one who defies him. The key is to show yourself to be superior that they will not defy you in the first place."

Akashi guessed it. "Slaine from Aldnoah Zero." Kuroko nodded. Everyone clapped. Who knew Kuroko could act. Murasakibara went next.

"Are you okay? It's tough isn't it? Even if you're told not to let it get to you, it's impossible." Mayuzumi answered this one. "Masato from Uta no Prince Sama." Murasakibara nodded.

Hyuga went next. "I just thought that I'd spend my last year as a high school swimmer in my hometown, enjoying it my way, since I already know where I'll be going after High school."

Mibuchi guessed it. "Another Free! quote! This one is by Sousuke." Kasamatsu hummed. "Despite the complaints, there seems to be a lot of guys who watched it." Those who watched it defended themselves. "The animation is good."

Lastly Akashi decided to go and he asked Midorima to join him. "Fine" Midorima grumbled. He cleared his throat.

"I~Za~Ya~Kun~" Midorima said. "Come~out~and~pl-"

Akashi stepped in "Why is Shizu-chan here?"  
"I'm obviously here to beat you up."

"And why do you have to beat me up?"

"Because I'm in a bad mood."

Everyone clapped. "That sounded just like Orihara Izaya and Heiwajima Shizuo." Kuroko said. "Who knew you could act, Shin-chan?" Takao said. "Shut up!" Midorima said. His cheeks were a little red.

Everyone went to bed after that. The next morning everyone finished their morning practice and head straight to watch more of the videos.

 **...**

 **The episode begins with the title "You'll See Something Amazing."**

"Shutoku" Seirin said. "More specially...Midorima." Kagami said. 'It's finally our time to shine.' Shutoku thought.

 **It started off right from where the previous episode had ended. 'What? What happened?' Papa thought.**

"Seirin scored." Everyone said.

" **Let's get them back." the captain of Shintoki said. Kuroko intercepted the pass which allowed Kagami to make another dunk.**

" **You're kidding!"**

' **Who are these guys?' Papa thought**

"The guys that will teach you not to underestimate Japanese players." Seirin said.

" **That's two dunks in a row!" An audience member said. "This is just the first round!"**

" **That was amazing!" Hyuga said. "Has Kuroko always been this scary?"**

"You haven't seen anything yet!" The GoM said. "Tetsu is scary as Akashi." Aomine said. "No one can be scary as Akashi-kun." Kuroko said. "Yeah...well, you're close second." Aomine said. "What are you two talking about?" Akashi said. "I'm not scary." Everyone gave Akashi a blank look.

" **Are you really that mad being called a kid?" Hyuga called out to Kuroko.**

"He has every right to be." Akashi said.

" **Yeah" Kagami said. A flashback of when Papa insulted the GoM was shown. "It's like don't talk bad about them unless you've played them."**

"You were defending the GoM?" Koganei asked. "They would've done the same for me." Kuroko said. The GoM agreed.

 **It was the end of the first quarter. Seirin was gathering around to discuss their game plan. "Since we're subbing out Kuroko-kun, we'll lose some man power." Riko said. "They don't have any dangerous players aside from "Dad". Ultimately it will come down to how Kagami-kun will handle him."**

" **Leave it to me." Kagami said confidently. The game resumed. Kagami tried to block Papa's shot but failed.**

" **Did he get taller?" Hyuga asked.**

"Intimidation does make people seem bigger." Otsubo said. 'I wonder if that's why Akashi/Akashicchi does it?' Kise and Aomine thought. Akashi glared at them.

" **I won't lose." Papa said with determination.**

" **That's more like it." Kagami said. "I'm starting to get excited."**

 **Hyuga went for a three point. ' 's too short.' Luckily Kagami was there to get the rebound and make the shot. Riko gave a questioning hum.**

"What's up with coach?" Koganei asked. "Who knows?" Hyuga said.

 **The captain gave Papa the ball to shoot but Papa passed it instead. Riko hummed. Papa got the ball again but it didn't work. 'Why' Papa thought 'He is getting more and more taller?' As each time Papa tried to shoot Kagami would get closer to towering over his shots.**

"So this is when Kagami's potential coming out." Wakamatsu said.

" **Looks like the practice is paying off." Tsuchida said.**

" **But don't you think he is trying too hard?" Riko asked**

"Huh?" Everyone asked.

 **Meanwhile Kuroko was thinking back to what Kise told him.**

"Huh." Hyuga said. "So you were preparing for Kagami's behavior change all along." Everyone gave a confused look. Kuroko nodded.

" **Shintoki got a three pointer."**

" **It's a one point difference." Riko snapped out of her trance.**

' **We can't afford to cut it loose.' she thought. "Kuroko-kun, can you go for the last five minutes?"**

" **Actually I've been ready for a while." Kuroko said with blunt politeness.**

Everyone laughed.

 **Riko sheepishly apologize. "Then go!" The game resumed with Kuroko back in play.**

" **Dammit, there he goes again!"**

" **What is going on with those passes?"**

Seirin and the GoM smiled fondly at their phantom sixth man.

" **Don't let your guard down until the end." Hyuga said. The ball was passed to Papa who was once again facing off against Kagami.**

" **No" Papa said. "I don't want to lose."**

" **You said you were disappointed with the GoM," Kagami said. "but you overestimate yourself."**

"Got that right." The GoM said.

" **Compared to you," The screen showed Kise. "They are way stronger." Kagami blocked Papa's shot.**

"Aww Kagamicchi." Kise said with a humble smile. Kagami blushed "Shut up!" Everyone else smirked.

 **The game was over! Seirin won 79-67. "Alright!" Seirin cheered. The screen showed Midorima. He was watching Seirin's match from the balcony.**

"Takao-kun was right" Kuroko said. Takao smirked while Midorima glared at the T.V. screen.

 **Papa came up to Kagami. "I lost" Papa said. "Please play hard for me in the next game."**

"Huh" Everyone said. "He might be an idiot but at least he has sportsmanship." Takao said. Seirin gave a blank look.

" **Sure" Kagami said. All of a sudden, Papa insulted Kagami. His captain dragged him away.**

"Never mind" Takao said with a blank look. "I take back what I said." Everyone else gave a blank look. Players like Papa really ticks them off.

 **Kagami was twitching in anger while Hyuga and Kuroko watch on with a blank look.**

"I swear the next time I see him, I'll beat him to pulp" Kagami said. "Get in line, Bakagami." Aomine said.

 **In this way, Seirin made it through our first game in the preliminaries. Riko was narrating. Our second game was against Jitsuzuken High. With Kuroko-kun benched the whole game, we won 118-51.**

"They are not showing all of the game." Kotaro said. "They probably want to get to the main games just like how we want to see it." Akashi said. 'Thank you' Everyone stated their gratitude to the heavens.

 **Our third game was against Kinga High. They were a strong team but surprisingly… "This is going smoothly." Riko said. Beside her Kuroko was twitching. "Kuroko-kun?" Riko asked.**

" **It's nothing." Kuroko said. "I'm just feeling a little restless."**

Everyone laughed. Kagami ruffled Kuroko's head who swat it away with a pout.

' **He must really want to play.' Riko thought.**

 **Our fourth game...The screen changed to Seirin practicing on court.**

" **It's our fourth game." Someone from the opponents said. "We might have a tough one.**

" **Oh come on, we're up against Seirin." His teammate said.**

Seirin frowned.

" **They are just a new school who made it through because of luck."**

"Wait...those guys…" Kise said and then laugh "This is going to be hilarious." Everyone stared at Kise.

 **The screen flashed back to the streetball court. "It's those guys from the other day." Kagami said.**

Everyone realized what Kise was thinking and started to snicker.

 **Kagami went up to greet them. "Yo, we meet again." The guy stepped back in fright realizing who it was.**

" **Hello" Kuroko said rolling the ball in his fingertip just like in the streetball court. The guy stepped back in fright even more. Realizing that two of the guys that were on the team that destroyed them were from Seirin, the opposing team despaired. 'They are going to destroy us.'**

Everyone howled in laughter.

" **What!?" Hyuga exclaimed "Kuroko you know them?"**

" **Wait" Koganei said. "Why does it feel like we won already!?"**

"Now we know." Seirin said after everyone caught their breath. Some people laughed some more because of what Koganei said.

 **...was against Meijo Academy. Riko continued her narrative. For some reason our opponents were terrified of us the entire time. The screen showed Meijo nervously bowing at Seirin while everyone except for Kagami and Kuroko in Seirin looked on with a blank look .**

Everyone laughed again. "Oh man!" Kise said catching his breath. "I wish I was there to see it."

"This was hilarious." Fukai said

 **We destroyed them 108-41. They freshmen trio were really excited because at the rate Seirin was going, they had high hopes they will make it past the preliminaries.**

"To be naive gain…" The trio said together.

 **Hyuga explained to the trio how for the last ten years the three kings were the only schools to make it to the preliminaries. Seiho, Shutoku and Senshinkan.**

 **He also explained that after their fifth match, they will have to face against Shutoku-the team with Midorima in it-in the semi-finals and finals.**

" **But you guys made it to championship league last year right?" Kawahara asked.**

" **Yeah...but we didn't stand a chance." Hyuga said.**

Seirin's seniors grimaced. The memories were painful but thankfully the memories of the winter cup was helping them get over those memories. Not only that, but it was because of those losses that they are where they are now.

' **Our seniors definitely aren't weak, but…' Kagami thought. There was a huge commotion in the courts.**

" **They are here." Hyuga said.**

" **It's better for you to see it than hear it." Riko said as the Shutoku team entered the courts. "First years prepare yourselves." Riko said. "You'll see something amazing today."**

"Ah it's the title of today's episode." Takao said.

" **One of the three things of Tokyo, Shutoku High." Riko said.**

"And we've officially made our entrance." Miyaji said.

 **The courts erupted with loud cheers from the Shutoku supporters. "I'm going to say hi." Kagami said.**

" **Sure" Hyuga said absentmindedly. "Wait what!?" He said realizing what Kagami had said.**

 **Kagami went up to Midorima. "You're Midorima Shintarou, aren't you?"**

 **Midorima was holding a teddy bear. "That's right." he said. "Who are you?"**

 **Takao inwardly chuckled 'You know who he is. Why are you being so proud?' He thought.**

Everyone laughed while Midorima glared at Takao. Takao sensing the danger left the Shutoku bench and went to join Kuroko. "Do you mind if I stayed here?" he asked Kuroko. "Not at all." Kuroko said. "Thanks Tet-chan." Takao said.

Everyone would've let it go until they realized what Takao had said. "Tet-chan!?" Everyone yelled. Takao shrugged. "Tet-chan and I are text buddies." Takao said. "We exchanged numbers after the Winter Cup." Kagami turned to look at his partner. "Is that true?" Kuroko nodded. "I'm also text buddies with Himuro-san, Kasamatsu-san, Mayuzumi-san and Wakamatsu-san."

Said people teammates turned to look at them. They shrugged. "We'll explain later."

" **You want to shake hands?" Midorima asked. Kagami smirked. Midorima sighed. Kagami took Midorima's hand and wrote something. It said 'Kagami Taiga, Seirin Number 10."**

Everyone laughed while Midorima glared at Kagami who gave a cheeky smile.

 **Midorima looked at Kagami in shock. "You look like the kind of guy who'd claim he doesn't remember me if I introduced myself normally." Kagami said.**

Midorima's former and current teammates roared in laughter. "You got that right Kagamicchi." Kise said as he caught his breath. Midorima glared at Kagami harsher while Kagami's smile got cheekier.

" **I want the guy who I'm getting revenge for my seniors to remember me."**

"I never thought I would see the day when Kagami is being considerate." Hyuga said. "I know" Izuki said. "I thought he was sick or something that day." Kagami huffed. He can be considerate. He did play the match against Touou for them.

" **Revenge?" Midorima said as he pushed his glasses up. "You're pretty reckless aren't you?"**

" **Huh?"  
"You're from Seirin, aren't you?" Takao said. "Didn't your senpai told you? Last year, all three kings defeated them by tripling their score." **

"Yeah...well this year we beat all three of them." Hyuga said. "Seirin holds grudges...don't they?" Wakamatsu whispered. "Some of them." Imayoshi whispered back.

" **Say what you will but the difference in strength is absolute." Midorima said. "Even if we meet in the championship league, history will only repeat itself."**

"You're wrong." Mayuzumi said speaking up for the first time. "History can help you predict the future but that on it's own is speculation. Time is not your friend and fate is not a straight line, that is why you don't know what will happen in the future." Seirin was staring at him while Takao whispered to Midorima "Not only do they play alike but they think alike as well."

" **No" Kuroko said joining the conversation. "You can only speculate based on the past. You won't know what really will happen until you play, Midorima-kun."**

Mayuzumi huffed while everyone stared at the two phantoms. 'Creepy'

" **Kuroko" Midorima said "I don't like you."**

"Liar" Almost everyone muttered. Midorima huffed.

" **I can't tell what you are thinking, especially from your eyes."**

"But that's what makes him so unique." Akashi said.

" **There is plenty I would like to say to you right, but telling you know would be meaningless." Midorima continued. "Join us in the finals first."**

" **You've got quite the mouth on you." Takao said as he swung an arm around Kuroko.**

'The fool is friendly as ever.' Midorima thought.

" **You went to school with Shin-chan right?" He asked. "Don't let it bother you. He is a tsundere."**

"Now many times do I have to tell you that I am NOT a tsundere." Midorima said. "Right" Everyone said not believing him.

" **He's actually interested in you." Takao continued "He even went to see your first preliminary game."**

" **You shouldn't make up so many stories Takao." Midorima said.**

Everyone snorted. "You're the one who is lying Midorimacchi." Kise said. Midorima glared at the T.V. screen for spilling his secrets.

" **How long are you going to keep talking?" Kimura called out.**

" **Huh?" Takao and Midorima turned to look at their bench.**

" **Hurry up and get ready!"**

" **Okay" Takao called out in a bored tone.**

" **Looks like Kuroko-kun really gave them an earful." Riko said with a wary smile.**

" **Who cares?" Hyuga said "He didn't say anything we weren't thinking."**

"Thank you." Kuroko bowed. "Why are you thanking us?" Hyuga asked. "I feel like I should." Kuroko said. Everyone shook their heads.

 **Midorima turned to look at Kuroko. "Kuroko, I will show you just how naive your thinking is."**

"What was that about testing your shooting?" Takao asked innocently. Midorima threw a nasty glare at his partner.

 **The screen then showed Seirin watching the Shutoku game. Meanwhile the Shutoku supporters continued to cheer on their team. "You want to start?" Otsubo asked Midorima. "Didn't you say you didn't want to play because your fortune was bad?"**

" **I bet you're excited after meeting an old friend." Takao said.**

" **I've had enough of your wild speculation." Midorima told him.**

"Wild speculation...yeah right!" Takao said. Midorima gave a look that clearly said 'Say anymore and you will face something worse than Akashi's wrath.'

" **I just wanted to test my shooting."**

" **Sure" Otsubo said "But don't forget the coach is only willing to let you get away with three selfish wishes a day."**

"3 selfish wishes a day!?" Every other team exclaimed. "Just how selfish of a person can you be that your coach will let you get away with 3 selfish wishes a day!?" Kagami exclaimed. "I feel sorry for Shutoku" Fukai said. "We humbly accept your consolidation." Everyone in Shutoku except Midorima humbly said. Meanwhile Midorima was really starting to hate this episode.

" **Two more times and I'll be pissed." Otsubo threatened. Midorima cowered away from his captain.**

"Oh my" Imayoshi said. "What's with captains threatening their kohais?" Everyone in Touou was giving him a look that said 'I can't believe you of all people said that.'

"As if you are any better." Aomine muttered. "What are you talking about Aomine?" Imayoshi said. "I never threatened you despite skipping _all_ the practices this year." The other captains gave him a blank look.

" **As long as you make your shots, I don't have a problem with it. Using your fortune as an excuse isn't worth shit."**

Midorima huffed. Having a poor fortune is a valuable excuse according to him but he didn't want to face his captain's wrath so he stayed quiet.

 **Midorima is undoing the taping in his fingers. "I cannot miss." Midorima said. "Today's lucky item is a stuffed teddy bear."**

"Always gotta bring in his lucky item." The GoM, Kuroko and Shutoku said. Midorima huffed while holding a lemon.

" **I have compensated for my bad luck." The Shutoku match has begun. The ball was passed to Takao who dodged two players, tricked the opponent's centre and passed to Otsubo. Otsubo took the ball and shot it in.**

"I love this." Takao said. "This made me so cool." Midorima rolled his eyes.

" **They are already thirty points ahead with four minutes remaining in the second quarter." Riko said. "I'm not surprised."**

" **They're not doing anything differently from us, but they make it look so easy." Kawahara said. "I wonder why?"**

" **Because they don't make mistakes." Hyuga said. "In basketball, the ball is always moving back and forth at a high speed. Without exceptions, strong schools always have solid basics like handling and passing."**

"Once you become a "strong school", you learn that a single mistake can cost you a match." Kasamatsu said. "That is why it is important to have control over the basics of the game."

 **Meanwhile Kimura stopped the opponent from scoring. He passed the ball to Takao who passed it to Miyaji who scored with a layup.**

"I feel like I should be doing a peace sign." Miyaji said.

" **They make it look easy because their fundamentals are so solid." Hyuga said. "But those are only the fundamentals. Naturally there is another reason, they have an infallible scorer." The screen showed Otsubo scoring a point. His opponents have fallen to the ground due to the force.**

Shutoku smiled proudly.

" **Sorry, are you okay?" Otsubo said as helped his opponents up.**

" **He's gotten even stronger." Riko said.**

" **We couldn't do anything about him last year." Hyuga said.**

" **Otsubo on the inside and normal outside was Shutoku's play last year." Riko said. "But this year…"**

" **He's five out of five so far." Kagami said. "Looks like Midorima's playing well."**

" **Is that right?" Kuroko asked.**

" **Shouldn't you know!?" Kagami asked with a bemused expression.**

"Kagami-kun overreacts way too much." Kuroko said. Kagami wanted to hit Kuroko on the head but that would mean feeling the anger of the GoM. 'I'm starting to understand why Kuroko can be so blunt and not get beaten to pulp.' Kagami thought.

" **I don't know" Kuroko said. "I've never seen him miss." Kagami looked at him in surprise.**

"Finally the secret is out." Takao said dramatically. Everyone rolled their eyes.

 **Midorima did one of his three pointers. 'Seriously? What's with this high arc?' Hyuga thought. 'Most people wouldn't have any sense of distance shooting like that.'**

" **Let's head back Takao." Midorima said. He was already going back to defense. "We are on defense."**

" **If you miss, I get yelled at too." Takao said.**

" **Don't be stupid Takao" Midorima said. "I follow fate and I do everything I can. That is why I never miss my shots." As soon as he finished his sentence, the ball went into the hoop.**

"Show-off." Everyone said. Midorima had a smug smile. Finally! Something good about this episode.

" **As long as Midorima-kun doesn't lose his form, he makes 100% of his shots." Kuroko said.**

" **Seriously?" Izuki asked.**

" **That's just not fair." Koganei said**

"Since when was playing against the GoM ever fair?" Hyuga said. Everyone groaned in agreement. 'Not our fault we are good.' The GoM thought.

" **He's heading back to defend even before he makes his shots." Tsuchida said.**

" **The time he makes his shots is abnormally long." Riko said. "It really gets you mentally." The screen showed Midorima making one shot after another.**

' **It's true he's amazing but why do I get the feeling he's hiding something?' Hyuga thought.**

"Are you a seer Hyuga?" Koganei asked. "Nope" Hyuga said. "Just plain old gut feeling." Meanwhile Midorima was impressed by Hyuga's intuition.

 **Midorima kept on making one shot after another.**

"The ball is going so high" Takao said. "I'm surprised you didn't break any of the lights." The GoM and Kuroko snorted while Midorima blushed scarlet. Everyone else just stared at them.

" **Amazing." Someone in the audience said. "Is this the true strength of the Kiseki no Sedai's number one shooter?"**

"Nope" Everyone said.

 **Shutoku won the game with a score of 153-21. "They destroyed them. This year Shutoku is...so strong!" Shutoku's supporters began to cheer.**

' **Their outside isn't a weakness at all' Riko thought. 'This almost makes last year performance cute. Midorima looked up at the balcony towards Kuroko and Seirin.**

"And you said that you didn't care about Tet-chan" Takao smirked teasingly. Midorima had enough of Takao teasing so he hit him hard on the head. "Midorima don't give Takao a concussion." Kimura said. "We need him in our games." Midorima smiled "Don't worry" he said "As a future doctor, I know how to harm someone without causing anything drastic."

'Is that really something a doctor should know!?' Everyone thought

 **Seirin was leaving the balcony. "Alright let's go home" Hyuga said. Riko quickly pushed them**

" **Don't!" she yelled. "We've got another game today!"**

"Really?" Some people asked

" **Are you stupid!?"**

" **I was just kidding! The mood seemed really gloomy." Hyuga said.**

"That was a bad joke Hyuga." Izuki said. "Shut up!" Hyuuga yelled.

" **Everyone checked the tournament bracket" Izuki said.**

" **Huh? We have another game?" Kagami asked "Seriously?"**

"Bakagami!" Seirin yelled along with some other people. Himuro and the others sighed and shook their heads.

" **You really are an idiot, Bakagami" Riko yelled at him. "Check the tournament bracket!"**

"She didn't have to yell at me" Kagami grumbled. "Yes...yes she did" Everyone said.

" **We play two games on the day of our fourth game and the last day!" Riko said.**

" **Two games in one day is too much." Koganei said.**

" **Yeah" Izuki said "Even if we get a break, we're still tired."**

 **Kagami looked at the tournament bracket. He looked closely at the bracket in surprise. "Coach" Kagami asked "The three kings are Shutoku and…"**

" **Seiho and Senshinkan." Riko finished.**

 **Kagami showed her the tournament bracket. "Isn't this…?"**

" **For our semifinals, our opponent is most likely Seiho." Riko said. "We'll play Shutoku in the finals. We are playing against two of the kings in a row."**

"You guys defeated both kings in the same day?" Fukai asked with a half impressed look. Seirin nodded proudly. "How did you do that?" Hayama asked. Seirin wasn't as strong as the Winter Cup yet. "You'll see." They said.

" **What!?" Everyone in Seirin exclaimed.**

"We didn't look at the tournament bracket that closely." Koganei said with a sheepish look.

" **That's impossible." Furi said.**

 **Kagami smirked. "Two games in the same day with both being strong opponents." He said "I couldn't ask for more."**

'Arrogant much' The other teams thought

" **But this is too much" Furi said**

" **Who are you trying to impress, right Kuroko?" Kawahara asked**

" **I'm sorry" Kuroko said. "But I'm also excited."**

" **What? Did you get Kagami's germs too?" Furi asked**

" **What are you talking about?" Kagami was offended.**

Everyone snorted. Aomine was snickering. Meanwhile Kagami glared at Furi.

" **I hope not" Kuroko said.**

" **The way you denied that pisses me off." Kagami turned to look at Kuroko.**

Everyone laughed with Aomine being the loudest. Kagami changed his target to Kuroko.

" **But doesn't difficult situations light a fire in you." Kuroko asked.**

"That's Tetsu for ya." Aomine said with a fond smile. "That's we got along so well."

"He's my partner" Kagami told him. "Yeah and I was his partner before you." Aomine said. "We all know how well that ended!" Kagami said rolling his eyes. Seirin and the GoM stiffened. 'BAKAGAMI!' Seirin hissed in their minds. Kagami realized what he said and quickly looked at Kuroko. He looked normal but those that knew Kuroko could see the hurt in his eyes. Everyone else looked really confused.

 **The freshmen trio looked at Kuroko in surprise while the seniors smiled. "Alright I'm on fire." Kagami said. "I'm going to practice!"**

" **Don't! You are supposed to be resting!" Riko yelled. "You basketball idiot! You basketball Bakagami!"**

Everyone covered their ears because the speakers in the room made it feel like Riko was in the room yelling while some just laughed.

 **The screen went blank. The screen showed the picture of the freshmen trio in the music store.**

"That's the end of the episode. Let's all take a break." Akashi said. His tone left no room for an argument so everyone agreed.

"Excuse me but we need to talk to our ace for a second."

"Takao come with me." Midorima said. "What's up Shin-chan?" Takao asked. "I need you to help me find Kuroko." Midorima said.

Done! I feel like the ending was rushed a bit! This chapter is early. So next chapter is most likely delayed. Please R&R! Thanks


	12. Chapter 12

Hi Guys! Hoped you like the last chapter. I can't believe I did a cliffy. I feel so proud. (Excuse my sadistic pleasure). Anyway thanks for liking and following. Here are the responses to the reviews.

Rinfantasy: Yep! You'll find out why by reading

CuteLittlePie: Arigato Gozaimasu

Yinyan555: I'm glad to hear you want to read more and don't worry

ImpsDream: I actually read some of those stories for inspiration. It is sad that they haven't updated it for so long.

Umbreonblue: ^_^ I thought it would be fun to add those references

Kuroshiroryuu: I love it too and you're welcome

Guest: Thank you

Shiranai Atsune: I'm glad the idea is so well received

Lock on Lockon: Thanks!

Guest: Wow! What a huge review! Too bad my response is short. The answer is in the story and thank you so much. It's rewarding when my efforts are paid off.

inspirit94ever: I want to put Riko in but if I put Riko in I have to put the other coaches (don't forget other schools are here with their coaches) in and there are so many people as it is. Personally, I have nothing against Izuki's pun but in the KnB world his puns are horrible. Not to mention if I write his pun, I have explain how it is a pun or write it in romanji to show the pun and I am not a native speaker of the language. Overall, the main reason I don't write it is because I'm a lazy person

NinjaStar777: Genius!? You are too kind! (blushing)

Don't own KnB! On with the story…

Chapter 12

Takao blinked and looked around the room. Surely enough, Kuroko was not inside the room. "When did he leave?" Takao asked. Midorima pushed up his glasses. "Before the episode ended is the most likely possibility." Midorima said. "I wonder why he left?" Takao asked. Midorima didn't say anything but Takao knew Midorima well enough to know that Midorima knew the reason. Nonetheless, Takao didn't question Midorima and went to help him find Kuroko.

Meanwhile, Akashi went up to Aomine. "Daiki" he said. "Could you come with me for a second?" Aomine nodded. He followed Akashi out of the room. Kise and Murasakibara also left the room as well. Murasakibara went to get some drinks meanwhile Kise went for a walk because his legs were tired from sitting down so long. With Seirin and all of the GoM members gone, the rest of the room was filled in a somewhat awkward silence with it's remaining occupants.

Imayoshi turned to Wakamatsu. "Care to explain how you know Kuroko's phone number?" Wakamatsu blinked. "Uh...sure." He said. "It's not really that big of a deal."

 _Flashback_

Wakamatsu sighed. It's been 3 days since the Winter Cup was over. Imayoshi made him captain and said that he would know how to handle Aomine when the time comes but honestly...he's completely stumped. Just how the hell is he supposed to control Aomine!? So Wakamatsu went to see Momoi. Since she is Aomine's childhood friend, she would likely have an idea on how to handle Aomine.

He found Momoi in the club room doing some manager work. Why couldn't Aomine be more dedicated and hardworking like her. "Momoi" he called out to her. "Captain" Momoi said with a bright smile. She started calling him that ever since Imayoshi named him Captain. "What's wrong?"

Wakamatsu sighed. "It's about Aomine." Momoi grimace "Did Dai-chan do something again?"

"Aside from skipping practice, nothing that important." Wakamatsu said. Momoi sighed. "I see. What can I do for you then?" Wakamatsu scratched his head. He wasn't sure on how to say this. "Was there ever a moment Aomine was uncooperative as this and you found a solution to it?" Wakamatsu decided to be direct. Momoi blinked. "Well Dai-chan was never as bad as now but back in middle school he would skip basic practice days, clean up days and study sessions for exam." She said with an exasperated look.

Wakamatsu blinked. "Were you ever able to make him come?" Momoi was quiet for a minute before she smiled and said. "Yep because Tetsu-kun made sure of it." Wakamatsu blinked. Tetsu-kun as in...Kuroko Tetsuya!? How the he able to do something the rest of Touou couldn't. Sure they were best friends but still. "Momoi" Wakamatsu asked. "Could I have Kuroko's phone number?" Momoi gave him Kuroko's phone number.

After a while, Wakamatsu stare at his phone. Finally, he picked up the phone and called the number. After a couple of rings, a soft and polite "Hello" was heard coming from cellphone. Wakamatsu cleared his throat. "Hi...it's Wakamatsu." Wakamatsu said. "Aomine's senpai." There was an awkward silence until Wakamatsu received an answer. "Ah yes, how may I be able to help you?" Kuroko asked politely.

Wakamatsu blinked. Kuroko was so polite. Why couldn't they get him rather than Ahomine to join their basketball club? "It's about Aomine." Wakamatsu asked. "Has something happened to Aomine-kun?" Kuroko asked. Even though his voice was monotone, Wakamatsu can still pick up the concern in his voice. "No Aomine is fine." Wakamatsu said. He wondered how to ask someon-who is complete stranger-for help. "It's just that Aomine skips a lot of practice and I was wondering if you ever experienced that." Kuroko was silent for a minute. "Aomine-kun was never as bad as he is now but there were times when he would skip a couple of days of practice." He said. "I'm sure Momoi-san can tell you all about it."

"Did you ever found a solution to that?" Wakamatsu asked. Kuroko was silent for a moment. "I would use our captain or vice-captain to make him scared and come." Kuroko said. "But that can only work 1 or 2 times." Wakamatsu agreed. "So I used plan B."

"What's that?" Wakamatsu asked. "Aomine-kun is very simple." Kuroko said. "Sometime in the summer of our first year in middle school, Aomine-kun got this limited edition of his favorite magazine. He treasures it so much that he carries it with him all the time." Wakamatsu sweatdropped. 'The hell!? Is he five or something?' Wakamatsu urged Kuroko to continue. "So one day when Aomine-kun decided to skip practice, I told him Akashi-kun was going to burn his most treasured magazine."

"Sounds like a good idea but even he can't be that stupid to believe that." Wakamatsu said. "Your right." Kuroko said. "So I showed him a picture of his magazine hanging on top of a candle." Wakamatsu blinked. "How did you get that picture? And if it's authentic, how did you get the magazine?" He asked. "He carried the magazine around in his gym back." Kuroko said. "It was in a plastic bag underneath his clothes and shoes."

Wakamatsu sighed. "You and Aomine must have been quite close to know something like that." There was silence on the line. Finally Kuroko said "Yes, we were." His tone was distant. "Did the plan succeed?" Wakamatsu asked. Kuroko's tone was back to normal. "Yes, it did." Kuroko said. "Aomine-kun rushed back into the first gym from the school roof in 3 minutes. He broke the school sprint record by the way." Wakamatsu laughed in disbelief. "How many times did it work?"

"We applied that trick 5 times and it worked every single time." Kuroko said without hesitation. 'Seriously!?' Wakamatsu thought. "Too bad it won't work for us." Wakamatsu said to Kuroko. "We don't know where his magazine is...wait do you think Momoi will tell us where it is?" Kuroko immediately said no. "What? Why?" Wakamatsu asked. "If she wanted to, Momoi-san would've told you this info from the beginning." Kuroko said. "My guess is Aomine-kun made her promise not to tell anyone about the location of his magazine."

"Che" Wakamatsu said in disappointment. Suddenly, a realization struck him. "Wait a minute, why didn't he make you promise?" Wakamatsu asked Kuroko. "Aomine-kun doesn't know that I know the location of his magazine." Kuroko said. "Whaaaat?" Wakamatsu was confused. "Like I said, Aomine-kun is very simple so it was easy for me to figure out where his magazines were." Kuroko said. "Aomine-kun figured Akashi-kun found his magazine with his intelligence, since Akashi-kun is very smart. Come to think about it, I think Akashi-kun already knew about Aomine-kun's magazine location."

Wakamatsu was silent as he tried to absorb what Kuroko said. Finally he said "So what you are telling me is that Aomine never made you swear because he doesn't know that you know." Kuroko's answer was positive. "Too bad you are not here to help us out." Wakamatsu said. "Why don't you check Aomine-kun's bag?" Kuroko suddenly asked him. Wakamatsu blinked at the unexpected question. "Oh come one" he said. "Even Aomine is not that stupid." Kuroko would not relent. "You never know" he said. After that, he wished Wakamatsu good luck and hung up because he had to go. Wakamatsu sighed. 'It better than doing nothing.' He thought.

The next day, Wakamatsu went and checked Aomine's bag while Aomine was not around. Surely enough, Wakamatsu found the magazine in his bag. Wakamatsu was completely baffled. 'How dumb can you get!?' He thought. He and the rest of the Touou team tried the trick and it worked like a charm. After that, Wakamatsu saved Kuroko's number since he never knew when it would come and handy.

 _Present Time_

"That's how I got his number." Wakamatsu said. "To think you can make Aomine practice with a trick like that." Imayoshi thought out loud. "As expected the sixth man is on a league of his own."

 _With Seirin Basketball Club_

As soon as Akashi had declared a break, Seirin left the room with Kagami in tow. They found an empty room and quickly went inside it and gave Kagami a look. Kagami feeling conscious of the look asked "What?" Hyuga sighed "Did you have to bring up the topic of how Aomine and Kuroko's relationship ended?" He asked Kagami. "You of all people should know how sensitive that topic is for Kuroko."

Kagami shifted in his seat. "I know that" he said defensively. "It's just that I get so mad at the the way Aomine's trying to act all friendly with Kuroko as if nothing has happened." Hyuga sighed. "I know it's weird seeing Kuroko and the GoM acting all friendly after everything that has happened." Izuki said. "But don't you think that is what Kuroko wants. To continue their friendship and pretend what happened is nothing but a bad leaf in a tree of memories."

Hyuga gave Izuki a funny look. "Tree of memories...Seriously?" he asked Izuki. Izuki shrugged "Why not?" Koganei interrupted the two. "Guys that's not the reason why we are here." Hyuga and Izuki stopped talking. "The main point is don't get too much riled up by Aomine and Kuroko's friendship." Hyuga said. "It's natural for them to be this close just like the two of you."

 _With Akashi and Aomine_

Aomine walked with Akashi into a room which much to his surprise was occupied by Murasakibara-who was eating a bag of chips- and Kise. "What are you doing here?" he asked them. "Aka-chin asked us to come." Murasakibara said. "Have a seat Daiki" Akashi said. Aomine took his seat. "So, why did you call me here?" Aomine asked. "What happened between you and Tetsuya?" Akashi asked

Aomine stilled. "Why are you asking something like that?" Akashi sighed "I wasn't asleep during the events that transpired when I switched personalities." He said slowly looking at Aomine. "The night I changed Tetsuya had come into the gym. Apparently, he had a talk with you and it seemed like it didn't go well." Aomine clenched his fists. 'It can't be that night...can it?'

"At that time, I didn't do anything." Akashi said. "But now I want fix the errors I made. I feel it's the only way for me to redeem myself for what I did." Kise gave a sad smile. "You're not the only one Akashicchi" He said. "Some of us didn't do anything bad but we didn't do anything good by just going with the flow." Murasakibara finished eating his chips. "Speaking of apologies" he said turning to look at Akashi "I owe you an apology Aka-chin." Akashi smiled. "It's alright." Kise placed his head on the table. He sighed. "We are idiots aren't we?" he said. Everyone looked at him. "We had something wonderful but destroyed it. And now, when we want it back it won't come back will it?"** Everyone was in deep thought as they reflect what Kise said. All of a sudden, Midorima came into the room. "Aomine, come with me." he said. The remaining GoM looked at him and Aomine left with Midorima.

 _Kuroko_

Kuroko was standing outside on one of the balcony. He needed some air and most importantly...he needed to calm down his emotions. When Kagami said _"We all know how well that ended"_ memories of the time in the rain rushed past him.

Kuroko tried to not let his emotions show but at a certain point, he couldn't keep his poker face and left. 'Why am I getting so upset?' Kuroko thought 'It's in the past and everyone's bonds are good now.' *Before Kuroko realized it, a tear fell from his eyes. 'Why?' Kuroko thought 'I cried enough about it.' He spent a while to wipe the tears and decided it was time to head back.

When Kuroko opened the door, he was shocked to find Aomine and Midorima at the door. "Aomine-kun" Kuroko was surprised. "Midorima-kun what are you doing here?" Aomine looked at Kuroko. "Tetsu, your eyes are red." he said. Kuroko touched the side of his eyes. "There was was water in my eyes." Kuroko said. Aomine sighed and hugged Kuroko. Kuroko stiffened. Of all the things he was expecting Aomine to do, this was never one of them. "Idiot" Aomine said. "Did you forget how well we know one another?" Kuroko gave a small smile. "Sorry" he said. "Idiot" Aomine grumbled. "That's my line."

Midorima cleared his throat. "Now that you kissed and made up" he said. "We should hurry up and return to the room." Aomine huffed but then he smirked "I had no idea you were such a masochist Midorima." he said. "Wanting to see yourself cry after you lose." Midorima's eyebrows twitched. "I will have you know that before our match, Kuroko will face Seiho." Midorima said. "I wish to watch that match for valuable information on Seiho for future matches since at that time I was playing a match myself." Aomine smirked "Whatever"

The three of them went back to the room when Aomine was beyond earshot Kuroko gave his appreciation to Midorima who huffed in embarrassment. When they got to the room, Takao smirked at Midorima and said "You really are a mother hen." Midorima huffed "Shut up." Slowly everyone returned and they got ready to watch the next episode.

*It was around here that Midorima and Takao found Kuroko. After Takao pointed out that Kuroko looked sad, Midorima went to go get Aomine. After they reached the place, Midorima told Takao to go back to the room

**Kise was basically saying that the bond between the GoM will never be the same as their middle school days as much as they wished it was.

Done! Since this is a double chapter update, move to the next chapter for the episode. Hope you like this late New Year present.


	13. Chapter 13

Yeah so this is episode 8...ENJOY! I don't own Knb!

Episode 8

Everyone was really excited. They were really close to watching a major match.

 **The episode started with a recap of the previous episode. It showed the episode title "Now that I think about it." The episode showed Kagami eating a lot like usual.**

'What else is new?' Everyone thought. Some of them are still not used to how much Kagami eats.

" **You're eating more than usual." Kuroko told him.**

"I'm surprised you can even keep track Kuroko." Furi said.

 **Kagami looked back at Kuroko. "I'm surprised that's enough for you." he said looking at Kuroko's food. He was having 2 half sandwiches and a box of juice.**

"Tetsuya, you really need to eat more." Akashi said. "An athlete needs twice as much calories as a regular human being." Kuroko quietly sipped his milkshake.

" **We played two games yesterday." Kagami said. "I'm so hungry."**

" **I'm sore at least." Kuroko said.**

" **What does that mean?" Kagami asked "I guess I am as well." Kagami stretched out his neck.**

" **Kagami-kun, Kuroko-kun" Riko called out to them from the outside of their class. They looked at the door. Riko was there holding two big boxes. "Perfect!" she said. "Come with me."**

 **The screen showed Riko has made Kagami and Kuroko carry the two boxes.**

"She didn't need to make Kurokocchi carry that heavy box." Kise said. "Kagamicchi could've done it himself."

"Excuse me but I was suffering from a sore body." Kagami said. "So?" Kise said not caring a bit. Kagami grumbled.

" **We're sore" Kagami said with exasperated expression. "What are you...an ogre?"**

" **You want a maiden to carry those heavy boxes?" Riko asked "That's suppose to be a boy's job."**

"Maiden?" Aomine asked "What maiden?" Hyuga sighed 'He better be glad Riko didn't hear him.'

" **I don't see a maiden anywhere." Kagami said. Riko punched him in the gut. Kagami yelled out in pain**

Everyone laughed while Aomine blinked. "That punch hurt almost as much as Kuroko's punches" Kagami muttered. Seirin looked at Kagami.

" **What is this, anyway?" Kagami asked.**

" **These are the DVD's of last year and this year's matches for the club room." Riko said. "They are for scouting but the club room is small. We are going to play two games against the kings. There is no such thing as over analyzing."**

Everyone agreed with Riko

 **The screen changed to evening time. Someone was holding a DVD. "DVD?" Midorima asked.**

" **Yeah, of Seiho" Takao said. "We are the only first years on the team and we don't know anything."**

" **I'm not interested." Midorima said.**

" **Just because Kuroko and Kagami aren't in it, don't be like that." Takao said.**

"That's not the reason why I did not want to watch the DVD." Midorima said as everyone laughed.

" **These are the guys we need to beat in the finals."**

"In other words, they were not expecting us to win the match at all." Hyuga said. "Don't you just love it when you beat expectation?" Izuki asked. Almost everyone in Seirin agreed. Kuroko and Kagami were creeped out by their senpais behavior so they went to seat somewhere else. Kuroko sat with Aomine's team while Kagami went to sit with Himuro.

" **Besides, we're off today." Takao said. "It's not like you have anything better to do." Midorima was going to refuse the invitation but Takao quickly said. "It's decided."**

" **Oi" Midorima said.**

Everyone laughed while Kuroko said "Takao-kun is a good partner for Midorima-kun." Takao smiled but Midorima scowled and asked Kuroko "How!?" Kuroko choose not to answer. "Don't just stay silent!" Midorima yelled.

 **The screen went back to Seirin's locker room. "I forgot my towel." Kagami said to no one.**

"Kaga-chin talking to himself." Murasakibara said. "It helps me think" Kagami grumbled with his ears being a little red. "Kagami-kun thinks?" Kuroko asked. He did not bother hiding the confusion in his voice. "Oi!" Kagami said offendly.

 **He went to his locker to retrieve it. The moment he closed the door, Kuroko was standing by at his lockers. Kagami yelled out in surprise. "What are you doing here?" he asked "When did you get here?"**

Everyone laughed. "They certainly know how to show Tetsuya's misdirection properly." Akashi mused.

" **I forgot something." Kuroko replied "You came in after me."**

" **You should've said something!" he yelled "You scared me!"**

Everyone laughed some more.

' **If I don't pay attention, I don't notice him at all.' Kagami thought. 'I haven't experienced it in a while.'**

" **Look at that" Kuroko pointed at something. The camera showed that on a stool was a DVD.**

"Wasn't it your job to make sure we didn't forget anything Koganei?" Tsuchida asked "Eh, but I was so tired." Koganei said. Seirin sighed

 **In the DVD cover it said Seiho vs. Kitawada.**

Takao blinked. "That's the DVD Shin-chan and I were watching."

'What a coincidence!' Everyone thought.

 **The DVD showed Seiho match. "I see" Midorima said "I can tell why they are considered one of the kings. Their defense is especially strong. However..."**

" **They're movements are kind of weird." Kagami said as if he had the same thought as Midorima. He and Kuroko were also watching the DVD**

"I can't believe I thought the same thing as a Bakagami." Midorima said in aghast. "What do you mean by as a!?" Kagami yelled while everyone else laughed.

" **I mean…" Kagami said as the screen showed Seiho stopping an opponent from advancing. 'Their rhythm is different. What is this feeling?'**

 **The scene changed to Shutoku. "I forgot to mention it, but this school holds special practices." Takao said. "I don't know how they do it, but their mobility is exceptional. They run the best defense in Tokyo."**

" **This bald guy's defense is especially tough." Kagami said as the screen went back to Seirin.**

" **I know him." Kuroko said.**

" **Huh" Kagami said.**

" **I played against him in middle school." Kuroko said. "Even though we just started, he was able to stop Kise-kun." Kagami looked at him in surprise.**

Some people raised an eyebrow at that. "Funny" Kasamatsu said looking at Kise. "I don't recall you telling me anything like that when we talked about Seiho." Kise gave a nervous chuckle. "It didn't seem that important at the time."

 **The screen changed to show a basketball court. "Twenty-four seconds overtime." The referee had shouted.**

" **What?" the screen showed Kise in his Teikou uniform facing off against Tsugawa.**

The Teikou graduates eyes opened in shock. Here they were thinking of the past and now the screen just had to go and show it. Everyone else was wondering if this was what they think it was and looking at the GoM faces, they knew they were right.

" **Kise, you kept the ball too long you idiot!" Aomine yelled. His backside was facing the camera.**

" **Sorry!" Kise apologized to Aomine in a meep tone.**

" **Kise-chin give a break." Murasakibara said. His back was also facing the camera.**

 **The screen showed Midorima who pushed up his glasses. "This is why you aren't any good." He said to Kise.**

 **The screen then showed Kuroko who said "Kise-kun, please pass the ball."**

" **Kurokocchi, even you are mad?" Kise said looking at his mentor in shock.**

By now, everyone had recovered from the revelation. Meanwhile Kise was annoyed. Yes, he was feeling nostalgic but seeing himself get scolded by his old teammates in front of his new teammates and rivals isn't something he wants to be revealed.

 **The screen showed Akashi by the sidelines. "Kise, you're the only twenty points under norm." He said.**

" **Sorry" Kise immediately straightened. "But Kurokocchi…"**

"When you make an error, man up and face it." Akashi said. "Don't push other people into your mess."

"Hai Akashicchi" Kise said in a quiet voice.

" **Kuroko is different." Akashi said. Kise's sheepish smile turned into a glare as he looked at Tsugawa. Tsugawa looked at him in surprise.**

" **What's your name?" Kise asked. "Because of you I'm the only one getting yelled at today."**

" **Tsugawa Tomoki" Tsugawa said. "They are yelling at you, huh?" He smiled. "That's great" he said "I love seeing people get upset."**

"He's a creep." Those that didn't know Tsugawa said. Everyone that did know him completely agreed.

" **Who is this guy?" Kise said with wary expression "Will someone change marks with me, please!?"**

"Everyone was so mean!" Kise said with crocodile tears. "No one wanted to switch marks with me and I was stuck with that creep for the entire game!" Everyone ignored him.

 **The screen changed back to Midorima in Shotoku's locker room. "To be honest, I do not particularly wish to go against him." Midorima said with a wary expression.**

" **But you're the only one who can take him." Takao said.**

"It's a good thing Seirin dealt with him ahead of time, right Shin-chan?" Takao asked Midorima. Midorima simply pushed his glasses up and looked away.

" **There defense is good on a national level. They might even be able to stop you." The screen showed Seiho winning the match with the score 71-12.**

" **It's over" Takao said. "Seirin won't be able to overcome this wall."**

"Just how long are we going to have to watch our opponents underestimate us?" Koganei asked. "Probably until the Winter Cup" Izuki said "But even then I'm sure our opponents will think little of us."

" **Sorry but we are gonna have to play these guys in the finals." Takao said. "Keep that in mind."**

" **I know" Midorima said in a low voice.**

 **The screen showed the entire Seirin cast was now watching the DVD as well. "We already knew this" Tsuchida said "But this is going to be tough."**

" **Sorry but I feel like crying again." Koganei said weakly.**

" **Frankly, we'd lose nine out of ten times against Seiho and Shutoku." Riko said.**

"Is that really a good way to encourage your team?" Liu asked. "Normally...no" Fukai said.

" **But we just have to bring that one win to our games."**

" **Hey, listen" Hyuga said. "I wouldn't go so far as to call it a strategy, but I have an idea."**

'What idea?' Everyone except Seirin thought. "It was better than nothing Hyuga." Izuki said "Not to mention helpful."

 **Finally the day of the finals and semi-finals had arrived.**

Everyone leaned forward. It's finally starting!

 **The screen showed Seiho, Shutoku and Seirin all warming up for their upcoming matches. Kagami performed a dunk and looked over at Shutuko's court, specifically at Midorima. Midorima sensing Kagami's stares back at Kagami. For a while, the two continued to stare each other down.**

"Jeez with all the tension you're emitting, you might as well just kiss." Aomine said. Kagami wanted to hurt Aomine but Midorima beat by throwing an eraser at the centre of Aomine's forehead. Due to Midorima's strong arm and accuracy, it hurt a lot. Meanwhile, a lot of people were trying not to laugh.

" **You're staring down the wrong guy, idiot." Hyuga said as he directed Kagami's head to Seiho's court. Kagami got out of Hyuga's hold and held his neck. "No matter how hard you stare, if we lose the next game you'll look like an idiot."**

Everyone agreed with Hyuga said.

" **I was just looking at him." Kagami said.**

No one believed him.

" **I'm focused on our next game." The screen showed Seiho's warm up. 'Who are these guys?' Kagami thought 'They are strong but completely different from Shutoku.'**

" **Seiho seems more normal than I thought." Furi said. "They don't have any tall guys."**

" **I suppose they are small for a national class team." Riko said "Their biggest player is their captain Iwamura-kun."**

" **Is he tall as Mitobe-senpai?" Furi asked. "He seems very powerful."**

" **Then there is their play maker Kusuga-kun." Riko continued to explain "Those two are the core of their team."**

" **You're Kagami, aren't you?" Tsugawa asked Kagami. "You're hair is so red. Scary!"**

"I don't know him and he hasn't even been on the screen for one minute, yet I have a feeling that I won't stand him." Miyaji said. Those that know Tsugawa snorted.

" **Captain, this is the guy right?" Tsugawa called out to his captain. "Seirin's weak but he's the one strong guy, right!?"**

"And I was right." Miyaji said. He never like the idea of looking down on his opponents.

" **You've done it now, you little shit." Riko said clearly mad.**

 **Iwamura hit Tsugawa on the head with his elbow. "Quit messing around, you brat."**

Miyaji snorted. "If anyone can handle him, it's Iwamura." Otsubo agreed.

 **Iwamura apologized to Seirin "This guy can't read moods so he says whatever he is thinking."**

" **You don't need to apologize. We're going to win." Hyuga said. "If you look down on us like you did last year, you'll end up in tears."**

"How mature of you Hyuga." Kasamatsu said.

" **That won't happen." Iwamura said. "Besides we were not looking down on you, just stating the truth."**

" **What? Captain, you're not mincing words either." Tsugawa complained.**

"He was more polite." Miyaji said. 'If you can call that being polite.' Almost everyone thought.

" **You idiot, I don't sugar-coat my words." Iwamura said.**

"Isn't that the same thing?" Everyone asked

 **The screen changed to Kise and Kasamatsu.**

"Looks like this thing shows everything." Kasamatsu muttered. "Where are you going, Kise?" Aomine asked. "To watch Kurokocchi's matches." Kise said. "What? You were there?" Kagami asked. Seirin sighed. "Yes Kagami-kun." Kuroko answered his idiot 'light'. "They watched both our matches. You should really pay attention to your surroundings." Kagami huffed. "Shut up!"

" **What are you looking at?" Kasamatsu asked.**

" **A recording of this morning's Oha-asa." Kise answered.**

"Why would you listen to something like that?" Aomine asked "Are you trying to be that horoscope obsessed megane smartass with green hair?" Aomine comment earned him an eraser straight to his temple, courtesy of Midorima who was so annoyed that he was crushing his lucky item. Everyone else sighed. 'Why can't he ever learn?'

" **When this thing is good, Midorimacchi is good."**

" **Ah, the guy from Teikou." Kasamatsu said in recognition "What's his sign?"**

" **Cancer." Kise answered. "By the way, Kurokocchi's aquarius."**

" **I didn't ask." Kasamatsu said.**

Seirin sighed. 'Seriously why is Kise so obsessed with Kuroko!?'

 **Kise listened to the recording as it stated that Cancer was first while Aquarius was last.**

"Yet you lost." Aomine said "Show's you how reliable that thing is." Midorima's eyebrow twitched. "I will have you know that Oha-asa also mentioned I would have trouble with a Leo, which is Kagami." Aomine waved off his explanation. "You're just making excuses." Before Midorima could throw something at Aomine again and cause some serious damage, Akashi intervened. "Daiki, Shintarou quiet down so we can watch the match." He ordered them. The two calmed down though Midorima still looked annoyed.

Kuroko sensed this and went up to Midorima. "Midorima-kun, there is a reason why Aomine-kun is called Ahomine-kun." Kuroko told him. "You don't need to be bothered by his words. Besides Midorima-kun is Midorima-kun because of how serious he is with Oha-asa." Midorima was quiet for a while. Finally, he sighed and said "I'm well aware of that. You don't need to tell me." But Midorima's posture was more relaxed. Kuroko smiled and went back to his seat. Meanwhile Shutoku stared with wide eyes. "How did he do that?" Kimura asked. "Who knows" Miyaji said "Do you think he'll teach us?"

" **Geh" Kise said.**

" **What?" Kasamatsu asked**

" **This is terrible." Kise replied**

"Nice to see you mutually support your friends." Midorima said with a raised eyebrow. "Not that I care." Kise gave a nervous laugh. "Sorry" he said.

 **The screen changed to Seiho's dressing room. "What's your impression on them, Kasuga?" Iwamura asked**

" **The upper classmen seem to have gotten stronger." Kasuga said. "We should probably keep on eye on Kagami."**

"Kinda ironic, since Kagami isn't the one that lead us to victory." Izuki mused. "Eh?" The people who did not watch the match were confused.

" **Since you're both first years, Tsugawa, you'll take Kagami." Iwamura said.**

Kagami's eyebrow twitched as he remembered the match. He was about to ask Hyuga if he could punch Tsugawa but Hyuga refused. "Kagami-kun missed his opportunity when he had the chance." Kuroko said.

" **You should be able to shut anyone down."**

'Except for Kuroko.' Those who watched the match thought

" **Yes" Tsugawa said. "This is going to be fun."**

" **There it is, the Tsugawa smile."**

" **You're the only one who would smile while playing defense." Iwamura said.**

'That's kinds...true.' Everyone mused

 **The screen changed to Seirin's locker room. The atmosphere surrounding them was tense. 'Everyone's a little tense.' Riko thought. In other to loosen up her team, Riko offered to kiss them if they win the match.**

There was a pregnant pause in the room.

 **Seirin refused. "Morons, you could at least act happy even if you're forced to!" Hyuga yelled.**

"You guys are terrible." The other teams said with a laugh

 **Meanwhile, Riko was moping on the ground. She slowly got off the floor and yelled. "Shut up and get your act together, you idiots!"**

"There's the coach we know." Koganei said.

 **Seirin stared at her in surprise. "Don't you want to pay them back for last year?" she said. "It's got to be a lot with a year's worth of interest."**

" **Sorry, sorry, we know." Hyuga said. The screen showed Riko calming down. "Alright. Before we start, I'll tell you again." he said to the team. "I'm sure you'll feel it as soon as the game starts, but first years prepare yourselves for the worst. Seiho is strong. After last year's massive defeat, we hated basketball so much, we nealy quit.**

Some people flinched as they had experienced that feeling, while others wondered what it means to hate something you like.

 **The freshmen felt sad for their senpais. "Don't be so gloomy." Hyuga told them "We got over it. We're better now. This year won't be the same as last year. I'm confident we've become strong enough to be sure of it. " The screen changed to Kuroko staring at his captain. "Now we just have to win. Let's go!"**

 **The screen changed to Seirin heading to court. Kagami looked back. "Is something wrong?" Kagami asked. Kuroko was standing by the door.**

" **Kagami-kun, have you ever hated basketball?" Kuroko asked**

" **What?" Kagami said. He thought for a moment "No I haven't." He answered**

" **I have." Kuroko told him.**

The GoM flinched while Seirin grimaced as they remember Kuroko's story. Everyone else had wide eyes as they wondered what could've caused Kuroko to hate basketball since he was, arguably, the most passionate when it come it.

 **Kagami stared at his partner. "I believe my reason is different but I know the feeling." Kuroko said. "They are happy now, but hating something you love is painful."**

Those people that know that feeling grimaced.

" **When I talked to Midorima-kun, I told him the past and future are not the same, but they're not completely separate."**

'Because the wounds of the past affect your future.' Everyone thought with a grimace.

" **I think this game is important for our senpais to get over the past."**

Seirin upperclassmen gave a wary smile. 'Leave to Kuroko to figure something like that out.'

" **So…" The rest of Kuroko's sentence were cut off as the screen changed to the basketball court.**

"So what?" Takao asked wanting to hear more. "I want to hear more of the conversation." Wakamatsu sighed "Why do they keep cutting off conversations like that?"

 **The ball was thrown for tip off. The screen switched to Kise and Kasamatsu. "You took so long buying a drink that the game has already started." Kasamatsu said to Kise while he hit him. The screen changed to show them entering the game to see Seiho was leading with a score 12-0.**

" **What?" Kise said in suprise.**

" **Oi, Oi, are you serious?" Kasamatsu said.**

"It took us a while to get used to Seiho's movement." Hyuga shrugged.

 **The screen changed to show Kagami trying to advance but Tsugawa won't let him. 'He's defense is almost as good as Kise's.' Kagami thought.**

Kise pouted.

" **Kagami, you're holding the ball too long." Izuki told him as Izuki ran behind Kagami. "Pass it." Kagami passed the ball to Izuki. Izuki used Kagami to perform a screen and aim for a basket but Iwamura blocked him.**

"Ah my eagle eye is such a regal eye." Izuki said. Hyuga hit him on the head.

' **I thought I was open, but he appeared out of nowhere.' izuki thought.**

" **Now naive" Iwamura told him. "You're offense will not work on our defense like that."**

" **What are they doing?" Kise asked.**

" **I thought so when we faced them, but Seirin's a slow starter." Kasamatsu said. "Kagami's usually the one to put his foot on the gas, but without that they can't hit their stride."**

 **In his anger, Kagami tried to push ahead of Tsugawa but that caused him a foul.**

'What a hothead!' Almost everyone thought.

" **Just how easily does that idiot get angry?" Riko said from the sidelines.**

" **Kagami, calm down." Koganei yelled out to him.**

" **Kagami-kun, you already have two fouls." Kuroko said. "Get five and you're out."**

" **I know." Kagami told him. "Somehow, their movements are impossible to play against."**

' **Seriously' Hyuga thought 'I thought only the GoM could shut Kagami down.'**

' **We can't even pass.' Riko thought 'We won't be able to make plays with Kuroko-kun.'**

 **Izuki passed the ball to Kuroko. Kuroko tried to find a suitable pass target but no one was free. 'There it is again.' Riko thought 'He can't pass.'**

" **Seiho's defense is man-to-man." Kasamatsu said. "But this is no ordinary man-to-man. They are creating pressure by staying right on their guys the whole time. You can't break away from them that easily. No matter how good you are at passing, if no one's free you're playing at half-power."**

" **Their defense is strong." Kise said. "But they'll never last till the end of the game, playing like that."**

" **But they do" Kasamatsu said "Because…" Kasamatsu's words were cut off and the screen showed Seirin.**

" **Seiho uses old martial arts techniques." Riko said.**

Those that didn't know raised an eyebrow. Kasamatsu blinked. 'Looks like Seirin's coach noticed what he noticed.'

" **Old martial arts techniques?" Kagami asked "You mean something like this?" He does really bad b-rated karate move.**

Everyone laughed while Kagami huffed with a red face.

" **That's not old martial arts technique." Riko told him with a blank look. "To be precise, they incorporate movements from old martial arts." The screen showed a faceless man running. "One of those techniques is numba running." Riko continued. "Usually when you're running, your arms and legs move in the opposite direction." The faceless man demonstrated what Riko was saying. "But when numba running, your arms and legs move in the same direction.**

"Wouldn't it be nice to have something like this during an actual game?" Izuki said.

" **Apparently by not twisting your body, you avoid straining it and the energy you spent." Kasamatsu said. He was continuing Riko's explanation.**

"You and Seirin's coach were thinking the same thing, Kasamatsu." Kobori said. "I noticed." Kasamatsu said. 

" **You sure know a lot about this." Kise said.**

" **They are an unusual team." Kasamatsu said "They been interviewed in Basketball monthly as well."**

' **That Tsugawa defense is as strong as last year.' Kise thought 'However they won't take this sitting down for long.'**

 **The screen changed to Riko. "Aside from numba running, they use other martial arts techniques for effortless strength, moving quickly without missing a beat and other basic movements." She continued to explain.**

' **Old martial arts.' Kagami thought 'That must be what I was feeling.'**

" **But it's not like they can fly or disappear." Riko said. "They are high schoolers just like you. They are playing the same basketball you are."**

'High schoolers are scary too.' some people thought as they looked at the GoM.

 **The whistle blowed to tell it's time to hit the court. "Izuki-senpai." Kagami called out. "Can you pass me the ball?"**

" **What?"**

" **Let me go against Tsugawa again."**

" **Do you have a plan?"**

" **No, but he's human, right" Kagami said. "I just have to faster than him."**

" **What are you saying?" Izuki said in disbelief. "Are you sure it'll work?"**

" **Probably." Kuroko said. Izuki turned to look at him. "He does what he has to do."**

" **Should we leave this to him, then?" Izuki asked.**

Izuki blinked. They sure rely on Kuroko for a lot of things.

 **The screen changed to Kagami getting the ball and Tsugawa blocking him.**

" **One-on-one?" Tsugawa asked "Bring it!"**

" **I don't care about your martial arts or whatever." Kagami said. "Basketball is basketball." Kagami was finally able to pass Tsugawa. The screen flashed back to Kuroko's conversation before the game.**

' **I never hated basketball, so I don't understand everything you've said.' Kagami thought.**

"No surprise." Seirin said.

' **But I definitely understood the last part!' The screen showed the last bit of Kuroko's conversation. "So now that I think about it, I really want to win this game."**

Seirin smiled.

 **Kagami dunked the ball in, scoring Seirin's first point. Kagami went up to Kuroko. "We will win this game." he said.**

" **This game is finally getting started." Kasamatsu said.**

" **That's the first time anyone passed you." Kusaga told Tsugawa. Tsugawa laughed.**

" **The fun and pain are just getting started." he said. The screen went blank.**

"Next episode please." Almost everyone said.

Done! Not my best chapter but I hope you like it! Please R&R! 


	14. Chapter 14

Hi guys! I hope you liked episode 8! Nothing much happened though...I got a review wondering about NG-shuu's and OVA's. They won't react to NG-shuu's but they will react to OVAs. The OVA's add more plot to the overall story so that's why it's included.

Here's my plan for the OVAs.

For the Idiot's can't win OVA: Before Seirin's first match against Touou.

The two Teikou OVAs (The one about Kise and the one about Kuroko and Aomine): Will be inserted into the Teikou arc episode therefore they will be watching these two along with the Teikou arc. (I hope I can do it).

The "Saikou no Present Desu: Will be shown after the Winter Cup finals.

Anyway enjoy the next chapter! I don't own KnB!

Episode 9

 **The episode starts of with Midorima making his three pointers in slow motion.**

"Always knew you were a drama queen." Aomine said. Midorima decided to be mature and not say anything.

" **That's three in a row." Someone from the audience said.**

" **So this is the GoM's Midorima Shintarou." Midorima pushed up his glasses.**

" **Captain" Midorima called out to Otsubo.**

" **What?" he said. "Your finished?"**

" **Yes. I have a feel for it." With Shutoku in the lead they switched Midorima out of the game.**

" **They are switching him out after five minutes?" Kise said indicating he and Kasamatsu were also watching Shotoku's match as well. "Those guys are taking it easy."**

" **Of course they are." Kasamatsu said. "Their opponent is only a middle tier school."**

"Not every school can be Seirin." Kobori said.

" **There should be no surprises. If there is going to be any, it'll be over here."**

 **The screen showed the episode title "To win."**

"This is the first time they gave us some new info instead of a precap." Mayuzumi observed.

 **Seiho passes the ball from one point to another point. 'Their passing is ridiculous.' Kagami thought 'They quickly pass the ball as soon as they get it!'**

" **Mitobe!" Hyuga called out to him. Mitobe went to stop Iwamura but Iwamura passed the ball to Tsugawa. But before Tsugawa could make the shot, Kagami stopped him.**

 **The referee blew the whistle "Foul! White No. 10."**

' **Oi, Oi!' Hyuga thought 'Isn't that his third one already?'**

"Seriously?" Everyone said. "Taiga, you really need to calm down." Himuro said. "It wasn't my fault." Kagami said. "It was that annoying Tsugawa's" Hyuga hit him on the head. "What did Akashi said about not blaming someone else?" he said.

' **Damn, it's not that they're fast,' Kagami thought 'they just don't use many movements. It's like they are passing without ever catching it.'**

"If you're having trouble against that, then just practice against Tetsu." Aomine said. "He makes them look like amateurs." Hyuga blinked. "That's...not a bad idea." he said slowly. Everyone else was silent. They were thinking the same thing. 'Aomine...said...something...smart.'

' **Is this another one of their martial arts techniques?'**

" **I thought Seirin's engine was finally running with Kagamicchi's score but they haven't made much progress." Kise said.**

" **You can't be called a king by just playing a good defense." Kasamatsu told him. "Their offense is exceptional as well."**

Everyone hummed in agreement.

" **Seiho may not have prodigal scorers like you or Kagami but they're a different type of team. They're a team of experts."**

" **There are some experts too" Kise said. Kasamatsu looked at him "On Seirin." The screen showed Kuroko.**

"Oh yeah" Takao said. "You haven't been much active, have you?"

"No, not yet" Kuroko said.

 **The referee blew his whistle "Out of bounds, White ball"**

" **A nine-point difference, huh?" Tsugawa said looking at the scoreboard. As a result, he bumped into Kuroko. "Sorry" Kuroko said.**

"Why are you apologizing?" Kagami asked. "He bumped into you" Aomine said.

" **Who are you? Have you been playing in this game?" Tsugawa asked in surprise.**

The GoM twitched. They should expect this but shouldn't he apologize first!

" **I'm Kuroko Tetsuya." Kuroko said. "I have been."**

" **You're kidding! Seriously!?" Tsugawa said. "You're presence is so small."**

Some people laughed while others rolled their eyes.

' **He played him before but doesn't remember.' Kagami though with an open mouth.**

' **On top of that, he just casually said his name.' Hyuga thought. He was equally shocked as Kagami.**

"I'm used to former opponents forgetting me." Kuroko said. 'How sad!' Almost everyone thought.

" **You're a first year too?" Tsugawa said. He started to tell Kuroko how Kuroko's team was behind Seiho by twenty points in the first quarter.**

"He's lucky I didn't whack him across the head because of that." Hyuga grumbled.

" **Don't let it get you down." Tsugawa said. He gave a pat on Kuroko's shoulder and ran off.**

" **I got it." Kuroko said. Tsugawa turned to look at him. "I will make sure I am not disappointed."**

The GoM smirked. "Finally getting serious." Aomine said.

 **The screen changed back to the game.**

" **They've been like that all game." Furi said. "They can't pass like this."**

 **Izuki looked at his side and passed the ball. The ball looked like it was going to Iwamura. 'A random pass like that will never…' Kusaga started to think confidently.**

"That is true." Izuki said. "If we didn't have Kuroko."

 **All of a sudden Kuroko appeared and caught the ball. Kusaga was shocked. Kuroko passed the ball to Mitobe 'What?' Iwamura was surprised. 'A pass from behind the defense?'**

 **Mitobe took the ball and scored. "What was that pass?" Someone from the audience asked.**

" **It came back like a boomerang."**

" **It didn't. Someone tapped it."**

Seirin gave a small whoop.

" **Someone? Who?" The screen showed Kuroko wiping away sweat.**

" **Looks like the Iron Wall of Seiho defense never had someone pass the ball inside their defense." Kise smirked.**

" **Dammit." A Seiho player said. "What is going on?"**

" **Now, now." Kusaga said as he caught the ball. "Calm down kids." He passed Izuki and went to score but Kagami stopped him. Kusaga's eyes widened. The ball missed the basket and went into Izuki's hand.**

 **Izuki passed the ball to Hyuga as someone said. "Seirin is waking up!"**

Kasamatsu blinked. "I take back my statement." he said. "Kagami is not the one that wakes Seirin up...It's Kuroko." Seirin agreed. "We do rely on him a lot." Izuki said. He was thinking over all of their past matches.

 **Seirin bench members cheered as they closed the gap to 3 points. Tsugawa had gotten the ball but Kuroko came behind him and stole the ball from him. The ball went to Kagami who passed it to Hyuga who scored a three pointer. With that, the first quarter ended.**

"From a twenty point lead to a tie...Not bad." Mibuchi said to Seirin. "Not bad at all."

"Thanks." Seirin said.

" **By the way," Iwamura said "I heard this guy said something stupid again." He was holding Tsugawa.**

" **Yeah. Honestly it brought back a lot of last year trauma." Hyuga said.**

" **Sorry"**

" **But it's fine." Hyuga said. "We got over it."**

 **The screen showed Seiho sitting down. Tsugawa complained about how they are tied instead of in the lead like last year.**

" **Tsugawa" Iwamura called out. "Don't get ahead of yourself." Tsugawa shut up.**

"Iwamura is really a capable captain." Miyaji said.

" **If any of you have the same thought as Tsugawa, remember this…" Iwamura said. "They are strong. Make sure you don't think they are weaker than us!"**

Seirin's upperclassmen probably would've started crying. To be acknowledged as a strong team by a king...it almost makes all of last year traumas totally worth it.

 **Seiho coach agreed with Iwamura. "Iwamura understands. We're both high school teams. No one knows what will happen until the game is over. This game is just…"**

 **The screen changed to Riko who finished the sentence. "...just getting started!"**

" **Keep the formation as is! You're being led by their passes too much, so keep your zone tighter." She told the team. "Also, Kagami, you have a lot of fouls." Kagami frowned.**

"There is no reason for you to frown." Hyuga said. "You only have yourself to blame."

" **If you just try to match your opponent like a wuss, they'll control the flow of the game. Remember to play offensively!"**

" **Yeah!"**

 **The second quarter has started. "You won't get past me again." Tsugawa said. He was once again keeping Kagami at a tight defense.**

" **Their defense is tighter than ever." Furi said.**

" **Tokyo's best defense is finally waking up." Koganei said.**

 **Kagami caught the ball. 'I can't pass him.' He thought 'But…' he noticed Kuroko. He passed the ball to Kuroko as he passed Tsugawa. '...the two of us…' Kuroko passed the ball back to Kagami.**

 **Iwamura came in front of him "I won't let you." he said. So Kagami once again passed the ball to Kuroko who passed it back to Kagami who dunked the ball in.**

"The deadly duo finally made a play in the match." Most people said.

" **What was that?" Someone from the audience asked. "They blew past two people."**

" **They can do that?" Tsugawa said in amazement. "Wait, where did No. 11 come from?"**

Kuroko simply sipped his milkshake.

" **They can make it past that defense?" Kasamatsu said in amazement.**

" **They are more in tune with each other than they were before." Kise said. He clutched a few strands of his hair.**

The GoM knew exactly what Kise was thinking. In just a few months, Kuroko and Kagami got along almost as well as Kuroko had with Aomine.

" **But there is one thing that is bothering me." Kasamatsu said. The screen showed Kagami sweating heavily. "That's way too much sweat for the second quarter."**

'Stupid Tsugawa.' Kagami thought.

 **The screen showed Tsugawa smirking. "What are you laughing about?" Kusaga asked him**

" **I'm sorry."**

" **It's fine." Kusaga said. "You're happy Kagami is over pacing himself, aren't you?"**

Hyuga blinked. 'Maybe we should thank Seiho for the victory against Shutokou. I mean it did help 'the plan'.'

" **Not yet" Tsugawa said.**

" **You're a sadist."**

"Hate that guy." Kise said. Almost everyone agreed with Kise.

" **That pair's combination is certainly impressive." Tsugawa said. "But only one of them can score." The screen changed to Kagami who looked really exhausted. Hyuga was running to Seiho's side. The player defending him slipped so he passed the ball to Kagami. Kagami caught the ball.**

' **What is going on?' Kagami thought 'They're not trying to stop me. I don't know what they are thinking but I'll slam through the hoop.'**

"Smart people in those situations would actually care about what their opponent is thinking." Kuroko said as if he was stating a "Did You Know?" Kagami glared. "You know Kuroko, you're a great partner and all." Kagami told him "But you're off handed insults really piss me off!" Kuroko gave his "light" an unimpressed look.

 **Kagami jumped up to slam the ball. "No!" Hyuuga yelled "Don't do it Kagami!" Unfortunately, it was too late. The referee called out Kagami for an offensive foul. It was his fourth foul.**

Some people sighed. They were thinking something like this would happen. "Now what?" Susa asked. "Who knows?" Imayoshi said. "But considering how Seirin did face us at the preliminaries, I'm sure they found a way to solve the problem."

' **He did that on purpose.' Kagami thought as the screen showed Tsugawa smiling.**

Kagami grumbled. "It might tick you off but he didn't do anything that was against the rules." Hyuga told him. After all, he did something like that in the Winter Cup Finals.

" **Idiot!" Kise yelled from his seat. "What is he doing?" He collapsed in seat in exasperation.**

" **He'll have to back down now." Kasamatsu said. This caused Kise to sink in his seat even more.**

"You know you did something stupid when you're rivals gets annoyed with you." Fukai mused. 

" **It's only the second quarter." Fukuda said.**

" **That moron!" Koganei said.**

By now Kagami was getting annoyed at the screen. 'Alright I did something stupid. Do they need to discuss it so much?' he thought.

" **Excuse me, I would like to make a substitution." Riko said at the scoreboard.**

'It's the best thing to do.' Everyone thought.

 **Kagami was able to hear what Riko said and looked at her in shock. He tried to convince his senpais that he'll be fine. Everyone looked at Hyuga.**

 **Hyuga sighed. "Well, it works out." he said. "We were planning to sub out you and Kuroko in the first place."**

"Kuroko as well?" Wakamatsu asked. "Why? He's not a four fouler like Kagami."

"Watch and learn." Seirin said.

 **Kuroko and Kagami looked at Hyuga in surprise. "Me too?" Kuroko asked.**

" **We decided before the game started you'll only be playing in the first half." Hyuga said.**

" **But why?" Kagami asked.**

" **For one reason." Hyuga said. "In order to beat Midorima, we need you two."**

"Ah" Almost everyone said in understanding.

" **Even if we win this game, we'll need a strategy to beat Midorima in our next game." Hyuga said. "As we predicted, Shutoku is already preserving Midorima's strength. We can't win if you two are spent."**

"Even if your chances looks bleak, you should always look for a what if." Fukai said

" **But if we lose this game, we won't have the chance…" Kagami started to object.**

" **We know it's a gamble." Hyuga interrupted. "But if we can conserve you two, we'll have a slim chance of beating Shutoku."**

 **Kagami was objecting to the plan but Kuroko said. "Kagami-kun. Let's do what they said."**

"We're so lucky to have Kuroko." Hyuga said. Seirin agreed. Kuroko blinked. "I didn't do anything." 

" **What?" Kagami looked at his "Shadow" in surprise.**

" **I trust our senpais."**

" **Well don't worry." Hyuga said. "We'll beat Seiho."**

"We got some help in the end." Koganei said ruffling Kuroko. Kuroko shook his head. "In the end, it was the senpais victory." He said. "If a senpai has pride then a kohai has respect. All I did was fulfill my duty of fulfilling my senpais wish." Seirin's senpai were literally speechless. After a while they smiled softly at Kuroko.

'Why can't our Kohais be like that?' The other school seniors thought.

 **The screen showed Koganei and Tsuchida getting ready to play. "I haven't played in a while." Tsuchida said.**

" **Let's show them what we can do." Koganei said.**

" **If things get bad, I'll play." Kagami said. Koganei high-fived him.**

" **What are talking about?" he said. "You have four fouls," Meanwhile Tsuchida high-fived Kuroko.**

" **They subbed out their two first years." One of Seiho's players said.**

" **They're both gone?" Tsugawa said. "It's a little disappointing but whatever."**

" **Quit running your mouth you baggart." Hyuga muttered to him. "I'm going to teach you how to talk to your seniors, baldy."**

Everyone laughed while Hyuga scratched his cheek.

 **Takao looked over at Seirin bench. "Seirin subbed out their first year pair." He said. "Have they given up?" Midorima looked over. Tsugawa was guarding Hyuga who has the ball.**

" **No, they're doing the opposite." he said. Just then, Hyuga broke through the defense. Iwamura and Tsugawa jumped to stop Hyuga from making a shot but Hyuga pulled a fake and passed to Mitobe. "They intent to win." Mitobe dunked the ball in and scored, shocking both Iwamura and Tsugawa.**

"Nice work, Mitobe." Kiyoshi said. Mitobe nodded his head.

 **Seirin was at a 1 point difference. "He can dunk?" Kagami said in shock.**

" **Nice dunk, Mitobe." Hyuga said.**

" **Oi" Iwamura called out. "I heard your conversation. You think you can beat Shutoku. You are underestimating us."**

" **Oh" Hyuga said. "That was all talk."**

"What?" Almost everyone asked. 

" **Talk?" Iwamura asked.**

" **This is our revenge game." Hyuga said. "We can't brag about it if we win due to our first years. Ultimately, this is just senior's pride."**

" **Seniors." Tsugawa laughed "You're only just a year older than me." One of his senpais hit him on the head.**

" **You really need to shut up sometimes." he said.**

A lot of people chuckled while Hyuga said. "I swear to God, I was gonna do that but they beat me to it."

" **I accept your challenge." Iwamura said. "Bring it on!" Mitobe nodded.**

" **We won't hold back." Hyuga said. "Let's go, Seiho!"**

 **Meanwhile at the bench, Kagami was frowning. Riko punched his face. "Why do you look so serious?" she asked. "They're not that bad, so don't worry."**

" _That_ bad?" Seirin seniors said. "Riko is nice as ever." Kiyoshi laughed. The other teams snorted.

" **Yes!" Kagami's answer was muffled due to Riko's fist on his face. One of Seiho's player was dribbling the ball to Seirin's side of the court. Tsuchida came to defend against him. The Seiho player pulled a screen and went for the shoot but Hyuga blocked him.**

"Nice work Hyuga." Kiyoshi said. How he wished he could play in those games.

" **Amazing!" Fukuda said.**

" **He blocked it!" Kawahara said.**

 **Koganei had the ball. He passed the ball to Izuki, who passed it to Mitobe. Iwamura was defending against Mitobe. Mitobe went for a hook shot.**

' **This form…" Iwamura thought 'Could it be?' Mitobe executed a perfect hook shot.**

Koganei patted Mitobe on the back. "Nice work."

' **This didn't happen last year.' Iwamura thought. He turned to look at Mitobe. "Looks like you weren't playing around this past year." Mitobe nodded.**

" **No problem." Kusaga said. "This is nothing." Izuki went stop him but Kusaga did a scoop shot and scored a point.**

' **I've never seen such a soft touch.' Izuki thought. 'If Iwamura is a rigid player, then this guy is flexible.'**

A lot of people nodded in agreement.

 **Hyuga had the ball. He passed it to Mitobe. He tried to get a shot but couldn't evade Iwamura. "Here" Koganei called out to Mitobe from behind. Mitobe passed the ball to Koganei who scored a point.**

" **They're going at it harder than I expected." Kise said.**

" **This seems to work a lot better." Kasamatsu observed. "They form a team around Kuroko and Kagami this spring. In other words, it still developing."**

Izuki agreed. "It was an unexpected but welcoming change. But we were able to make it work at the end." he said.

" **Hyuga's outside shoot and Mitobe's hook shot. The offense revolves around those two plays that they developed over the past year." Kasamatsu said. "They must have been practicing hard to win after last year's defeat."**

"As expected of a national level point guard." A lot of people said. Kasamatsu was a bit embarrassed.

" **Also, there is one more thing I noticed about this team." Kasamatsu said. "This team's key player is the guy I was matched up against."**

Seirin blinked. 'Damn… Kasamatsu is good.'

" **It's not their captain?" Kise asked.**

" **Hyuga is their mental core." Kasamatsu said. "He leaves making plays to the point guard."**

"Really?" Those that didn't know asked. "He is the vice-captain." Hyuga said. "Not to mention his eyes are good for planning."

"Eye spy for plans using my eyes." Izuki said writing it down. "Shut up, Izuki." Hyuga said with a blank look.

" **He most likely has another eye." Kasamatsu said.**

" **Eye?" Kise said a little creeped out. The screen showed Izuki who has the ball.**

" **One, let's be careful." Izuki said. The screen showed Izuki's eye change to his eagle eyes. The screen showed the entire basketball court in Izuki's eagle eye view.**

"Woah" Everyone said. "That's so cool."

"How were they able to do this?" Izuki asked in shock. "After all, this is something only myeyes can see."

"Is this the same for you?" Midorima asked Takao. "It's similar." Takao said.

 **Due to his eyes, Izuki could see Hyuga coming behind Kusaga so he passed the ball and Hyuga easily caught it. He also used his eyes to evade his mark by making Kusaga and his teammate collide.**

"Nice!" Some people said.

 **This allowed Hyuga to pass the ball to Izuki who scored a basket. The audience cheered.**

" **Dammit, I was on his right side." a Seiho player said.**

" **But he used me as a screen." His teammate said.**

' **Seriously?' Kusaga thought 'That happened so fast. You would never noticed unless you have an eye from above.'**

" **Izuki-kun can see it." Riko said as if she was answering Kusaga's question.**

"Creepy" Everyone thought "Do you think this'll happen often?" Mibuchi asked. "Probably." Mayuzumi said. "It happens a lot in manga, anime and light novels."

"But this isn't a manga, anime or light novel." Hayama said.

" **He's got an eagle eye." Riko said.**

"So it took four episodes for our introduction and 9 episodes for our special skill." Koganei said. "How long till they show our special moves?" Izuki hummed. "Probably not until the Winter Cup."

" **Eagle eye?" Kagami asked**

" **He's not particularly athletic but he can change his point of view instantaneously inside his head." Riko said. "Because he sees everything from all angles, he always sees the entire court." The screen was once again giving a visual to Riko's explanation.**

"If only I had something like this when I'm explaining something." Momoi said.

" **Seriously?" Kagami said in disbelief.**

" **It'd be nice if you called it a nice shot." Izuki punned.**

" **Do you wanna sub out?" Hyuga asked. "Go die." He sprinted away from Izuki.**

" **Eh, die?" Izuki said in confusion.**

Everyone laughed.

" **Hyuga-kun and the others aren't good at everything but they each have one special skills." Riko said. "They been polishing them for a whole year."**

" **They're amazing!" Furi said.**

" **Does Koganei-senpai and Tsuchida-senpai have special skills as well?" Fukuda asked.**

 **Riko hesitated. "I guess."**

"What's with the hesitation?" the other schools asked.

"Coach is so mean." Koganei said.

" **Koganei can shoot from all ranges." Riko said as Koganei shoot the ball. The ball missed shocking Koganei. "But his aim is only so-so."**

" **Doesn't that make him average?" Kagami asked. Koganei despaired some more. It seems like he heard Kagami from the bench.**

Everyone laughed. "So mean Kagami." Koganei said. "Sorry" Kagami muttered. It's not like he said anything wrong.

" **What are you doing?" Tsuchida said in annoyance. He caught the rebound.**

" **Tsuchida is good at rebounds." Riko said.**

"Those are important." The centres said.

 **Tsuchida passed the ball to Koganei who went for the shoot again but missed again. This shocked him again.**

"But completely useless if you don't score the point." Everyone else said.

" **Enough already." Tsuchida said catching the rebound again. "How can you miss two free throws?" He lectured Koganei who was moping on the ground. In fact, he looked so pitiful that alongside his teammates on the bench, the opponents were feeling sorry for him as well.**

Everyone laughed even more. "I swear if there was an award for the most hilarious team, you guys would win it." Moriyama said. He was wiping away tears from his eyes. "Why thank you." Seirin said.

 **The match continued on with Seiho leading 54-49. The fourth quarter had just started. At one point Tsuchida had the ball but Seiho's player slapped it away from his hand. Thinking that the ball will be out of bounds, his teammates relaxed. At that moment Koganei zoomed passed and forced the ball back into the court.**

"Nice." Some people said.

 **Unfortunately, the force of the ball caused Koganei to lose balance and he teeter totter his way to Seirin's bench. Once he was at the bench, he somewhat comically fell over the bench and landed head first right in between Kuroko and Kagami.**

Everyone stared at the screen with a blank look. They just witnessed an injury turned into a comedy. What is this...Tom and Jerry!? Koganei pouted. That fall really hurt.

 **This shocked everyone in the bench so much that they immediately stood. "Koganei are you alright or not!" Riko asked. Her tone went from concern to panic.**

" **His eyes are spinning!" Riko went up to Koganei to gently shake him but Koganei made no response.**

" **Is he okay?" Kagami asked slowly.**

" **I think it's a light concussion." Riko said. "We might have to sub him out."**

 **Kagami asked Riko to sub Koganei out for him. "What are you talking about?" Hyuga said as he came to the bench. "You can't play!" Kagami looked at Hyuga. "Did you forget why we are conserving your energy?"he said. "We'll settle this, you wait!"**

" **I can't just sit still!" Kagami argued. "I want to help…"**

 **At that moment, someone forcefully pushed their hand to Kagami's face to make him quiet.**

"Ow" Almost everyone said. That sounded really painful.

 **The screen revealed that it was Kuroko who did the deed. "I agree." Kuroko said still placing his hand on Kagami's hand. "Therefore the guy with the four fouls should sit out."**

 **Kagami in anger grabbed Kuroko's head. "What did you say you bastard?" he growled at Kuroko.**

 **If Kuroko felt any pain, he didn't voice it. Instead he said, "If you foul Tsugawa-kun again you'll be kicked out of the court." Kagami realizing Kuroko has a point, slowly let go of Kuroko's head.**

"Face it Kagamicchi, you can never win against Kurokocchi." Kise said.

" **I won't!" Kagami insisted stubbornly. "I gotta pay Tsugawa back for what he did!"**

" **Fine" Kuroko said. "I will be beat Tsugawa-kun for you."**

"Huh?" Some people said.

" **What?" Kagami said in shock "What good will that do? There is no point if you beat him."**

 **While those two were arguing, Hyuga looked at the clock. 'Five minutes and a six point difference.' He thought. "Fine" Hyuga said. "As another first year, take down Tsugawa Kuroko."**

" **What?" Kagami said as Kuroko nodded. Kuroko walked into the court. Tsugawa looked up and saw it was Kuroko.**

" **What? It's you?" Tsugawa said disappointedly. "I was hoping it would be Kagami."**

Aomine rolled his eyes. "Tetsu is way better than that Bakagami."

"I'm right here you know!" Kagami yelled. "Don't care." Aomine said.

" **Sorry, I may not be strong." Kuroko said. "But apparently Kagami-kun has a grudge so I am here to pay it back." Tsugawa looked at Kuroko. The screen zoomed into Kuroko's serious face. "By proxy."**

'Damn that's so cool' Almost everyone thought.

 **The screen went blank. The screen showed a picture of Kuroko and Kagami in front of a crane game. What's funny about the crane game is that the prizes look a lot like everyone in the room along with Al from Fulllmetal Alchemist.**

'What the hell!?' Everyone thought. "That's the end of Today's quota." Akashi said. "Huh?" everyone said. They were so invested by what happened that they didn't hear what Akashi said. "That's the end of today's quota." Akashi said. Everyone absorbed what Akashi said. Finally Takao said. "I hate cliffhangers!"

DONE! Hope you enjoy it! Please R&R!


	15. Chapter 15

Hi! I was supposed to update my other fic before this one but I really wanted to write the next chapter! Hope you liked last chapter! I don't own KnB! Enjoy

Episode 10

The next day, everyone was just waiting for the episode to start. The last episode left on quite the cliffhanger. Naturally, they know what happens but still!

 **The episode started with the usual introduction and opening.**

By now, everyone knows the lyrics of the opening and has coaxed Himuro to sing along. Himuro realized they won't stop unless he agrees so he sings along with the T.V. screen. After he was done, everyone clapped.

 **The screen showed a preview of the last episode and continued from there.**

" **You're paying me back for Kagami?" Tsugawa asked. He called out to his teammate. "Could I change marks?"**

" **Huh? Why?"**

" **Well...it looks like I got a proxy who demands payment." Tsugawa said. Kuroko says nothing and the title screen of the episode was shown. It was 'I can't have that.'**

 **The game resumed with Furi fanning Koganei at the side while everyone watches the match. "For them send out you instead of Kagami is surprising." Tsugawa said. "But for them to send out a first year after all, I guess Seirin's upperclassman aren't so dependable."**

Seirin's upperclassmen eyebrow twitched. 

**Kuroko looked at Tsugawa. "They said said that they benched you two because it was their will but here you are."**

" **I asked to be put in." Kuroko said. "Anyway if you've been watching the game, there's no way you could believe that."**

"Thanks Kuroko." His seniors said.

" **If the upperclassmen have their will, than lowerclassmen have respect." Kuroko said. "I will defeat you to support the upperclassmen that I look up to."**

Seirin smiled while the other school seniors looked at their Kohai. "What?" the kohai asked. "Why can't you be more like Kuroko?" Their seniors asked. This caused some to apologize while others rolled their eyes.

 **Tsugawa hummed. The next moment Kuroko disappeared from his sight. Tsugawa was shocked. Kuroko passed Tsugawa. Noticing Kuroko was free, Izuki passed the ball to him who quickly passed the ball to Hyuga who was able to escape his mark. 'I lost him...How did...When did…' Tsugawa thought**

"That's what you get for forgetting Kurokocchi." Kise said.

 **Hyuga got the ball, smirked and went for the shot. "There it is!" The audience exclaimed. "Seirin's magic pass!" Hyuuga smiled at Kuroko.**

' **What's going on?' Iwamura thought 'Those passes are strong but even the receivers are slipping through the defense!'**

 **One of Seiho's players had the ball, he tried to pass the ball to his teammate but Hyuga intercepted the ball.**

"Nice." Some people said.

 **Hyuga ran to the basket but Tsugawa came in front of him so he passed the ball to Kuroko who passed it to Mitobe who scored.**

" **They know our movements!" One of Seiho's players said.**

" **They got us." Seiho's coach said. "I've never seen a school study us so intensively before."**

"How hard did you study them?" Kasamatsu asked. "One of video recorders broke because of Seiho." Izuki said casually. 'Damn' the other schools were impressed.

" **Thanks to you guys, one of our DVD players is ruined." Hyuga said to Iwamura.**

" **They really got us." Kusaga thought.**

" **As their name suggests, old martial arts is an ancient technique." Kasamatsu said. "Their thought process is completely different from modern sports. Applying those specialized movements to basketball is Seiho's strength but…"**

' **If you're specialized, you've got habits.' Riko continued for Kasamatsu.**

"Once again, someone else completes another person's thought." Hayama said. "This is definitely going to happen a lot."

' **Normally, a person would step towards the direction they are heading. Seiho's players point their toes in the direction they are moving before they move." The screen gave a demonstration to Riko's explanation.**

The other schools took note on that. This could be very helpful for them. "No fair." Seirin said. "We did all the work."

"Thank you for your hard work." The other schools said.

' **In other words, once we recognize this habit, we can predict their next move.' Riko thought. The screen showed a flashback of Seirin watching Seiho's matches. 'That's why the second years have been studying hard after practice.'**

Everyone laughed when Riko hit Koganei on the head because he was sleeping. Koganei pouted.

' **That said, keeping up with those movements was harder than we expected.'**

' **Because of that, we weren't able to make our move until the second half.' Hyuga continued.**

' **It's not really obvious enough to call a habit.' Izuki thought.**

Everyone agreed with what Izuki said.

 **This gave Izuki a pun. "Habits are hard to beat."**

" **I know right?" Tsuchida said. He and Mitobe choose to ignore Izuki's pun. Kuroko smiled at his senpais. Hyuga patted Kuroko on the shoulder and the match resumed.**

 **Meanwhile, Kagami was watching from the bench. "This is the senpai's will." he said. His eyes widened. Kuroko kept on making one pass after another.**

' **Now that I think about it, this is the first time I'm watching Kuroko from the bench.' He thought. Kuroko's passing streak continues. "Wow" Kagami said.**

Aomine snorted. "Are you seriously telling me you just noticed Bakagami?" He said. "And you call yourself Tetsu's light."

"Shut up!" Kagami said.

"Kurokocchi's amazing!" Kise said.

 **Riko realized what Kagami was thinking. "You just noticed?" she said. "He's always like this!" Kuroko made a pass to Hyuga who passed to Tsuchida who scored a basket.**

"Nice work Tsucchi" Koganei said. He missed this entire part of the game thanks to his injury.

 **The scoreboard shows Seirin leading 70-69. "A comeback!?" The audience exclaimed. "Is Seirin serious? Seirin caught up!"**

" **But!" Kasamatsu said. There was only 22 seconds left in the game and Seiho is in possession of the ball.**

Everyone leaned. For some reason, they had a feeling something interesting was going to happen.

" **We can't let them get this!" Hyuga said. Iwamura was charging through and made a basket.**

" **Don't underestimate a king!" he said.**

"Woah" Some people said. "Are you telling me you won the game in less than 20 seconds?" Wakamatsu asked Seirin. "It was nothing short of a miracle." Izuki said.

 **Riko gasped in surprise. The screen showed Seiho's defense. "All court man-to-man?"**

"Not good" The other schools said. 'A miracle would be an understatement.' Wakamatsu thought. 

**In the audience section Kise and Kasamatsu was just as surprised. "They're not just planning to defend but they are planning to score as well!?" Kasamatsu said.**

 **Back at the court, Izuki had the ball. "It's not over yet." he said. 'How can they try so hard at the last second?' Mitobe came behind Kusaga thus allowing Izuki to pass through. "Nice." Izuki said, "I'm impressed Mitobe." Once he passed through he passed the ball to Kuroko. Kuroko was about to pass the ball to Tsuchida but Tsugawa came in front of him.**

" **Tsugawa!? How!?" Kise asked.**

"How did he find him?" Hayama asked completely invested into the game now. "He doesn't have Takao's eyes!?"

" **He found him by calculating backwards from the pass course!" Kasamatsu said.**

 **Kagami sensing the danger, stood up from the bench and yelled "Kuroko!" Kuroko eyes widened. He made the hand that was going to make the pass, miss the ball.**

"Nice!" Some people whistled.

' **He missed' Tsugawa thought. 'There's no way he change his pass target with this timing.'**

"Think again" The GoM and Seirin said. "Of everything Akashi drilled into Tetsu, changing pass targets was top priority." Kuroko paled a little at the reminder. "I thought I was going to die."

"Nonsense." Akashi said. "I never make training that you couldn't handle." The GoM and Rakuzan stared at Akashi with disbelief.

 **Kuroko used his other hand to change his pass target to Hyuga. Hyuga caught the ball and went for a three pointer. As the ball float in the air, it showed the various players reactions. Finally, the ball went in as the timer hit zero and the buzzer went. Seirin cheered as the referee said "Game over!" Seirin had won with a score 73-71.**

The other schools clapped while Seirin gave a small cheer for their victory. "Nicely done." Okamura said. "And we're not even done half of the episode."

"You know what this means" Hayama said excitedly. "Seirin vs. Shutoku."

"I wonder how much are they going to show this episode." Mibuchi said.

 **Koganei had gained conscious and said "Alright!" as he ran to the court. Kagami on the other hand was not cheering like everyone else.**

Hyuga hit Kagami on the head. "We won so why are you not cheering?" he asked. "Let me guess" Midorima said. "You were jealous that Kuroko got the spotlight instead of you this time." Kagami grumbled. "I was not." No one believed him.

 **The Seirin players on the court had gathered around Kuroko. They were patting him and hugging him. Riko looked at them with teary eyes. After taking a deep breath, she smiled.**

Kiyoshi understood exactly how Riko felt. He wished he could have seen this moment with his own eyes rather than the screen.

 **Tsugawa was panting angrily. He started complaining about how it was unfair that Seirin won since Seirin was just a new school.**

"Life isn't fair." Everyone said.

 **Iwamura stopped him. "The strong don't win. The winners are strong." He said.**

"You know" Kasamatsu said. "Almost every single one Seirin's matches revolves around that quote." Everyone pondered over Kasamatsu's words and realized he was right.

" **They were stronger than us. That's all."**

 **After a moment of silence, Tsugawa looked at Kuroko. "Tell me your name!" he said to Kuroko.**

"He said it during the match." Everyone said. "Probably forgot." Takao said. Aomine snorted. "You don't need to tell him your name Tetsu." The other GoM members agreed.

 **Kuroko was surprised. No one has ever asked him something like this before.**

" **Tell me your name!" Tsugawa asked him again.**

" **It's Kuroko Tetsuya."**

Aomine rolled his eyes. "You're too polite Tetsu."

"Aomine-kun may I remind you that this already has happened." Kuroko said. Aomine was flustered.

" **I'll remember it." Tsugawa said. "I definitely won't forget it."**

" **Thank you" Kuroko said. He had no idea what to say in a situation like this.**

"The first time something like this happened to me." Kuroko mused.

 **The two teams bowed. "Congratulations" Riko said. She was on the verge of tears.**

 **Hyuga patted her head. "Keep it together coach." He said. "It's not time to cry yet."**

'How are they still not together!?' Everyone in Seirin except Hyuga thought. Meanwhile the other schools were now convinced something was going on between Seirin's captain and coach.

 **Riko wiped away her tears and nodded. "Looks like they are finished as well." Kagami said.**

" **You right." Kuroko said. "The screen showed Shutoku winning with a score of 113-38. The screen followed the Shutoku's players to the bench.**

"The next game is definitely going to be intense." Susa said. "Not only is it against a miracle, it's shortly after another game." 

"Which only makes it more fun to watch." Imayoshi said. "Especially when you aren't the one who isn't playing the game." Everyone gave Imayoshi a blank look.

" **How much do you have to love basketball to jump right into the championship game without hardly a break?" Takao said as he stretched.**

"You, along with Midorima, hardly played!" His seniors said. Takao pouted.

" **But, well, it's all good." Takao said with a smile. "They made it."**

" **I can see that." Midorima said. He looked like he hardly cared. The screen showed that he was staring at Kuroko and Kagami who stared back at him. The camera zoomed into his face as he smiled.**

Aomine shivered. "If there is anything scarier than that megane's anger...it's his smile." he said. "What was that, Aomine?" Midorima asked with a smile. "Nothing" Aomine quickly said.

 **The screen changed to Seirin's locker room. "Go put your jackets on before you bodies get cold!" Riko yelled "Make sure you stretch and take amino acids to resupply your energy!" She was massaging Hyuga's leg. "I'll also give you a massage so take your shoes off."**

 **She looked at Hyuga. "How is that?" she asked.**

" **Thanks" Hyuga said. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tired, but I should be able to make through the next game."**

"Yeah...barely" Hyuga said.

 **Meanwhile Kagami was sleeping. "Hey, Kagami" Riko said. "You're body will freeze up if you sleep."**

"Really?" Kagami said. "That never happens to me."

" **Let him be" Hyuga said.**

" **He's usually not this down after a game." Izuki said.**

" **It's probably because he got four fouls." Koganei said.**

" **You were subbed out so you have no right to talk." Tsuchida said. Koganei shivered as he felt Tsuchida's words stabbing his heart.**

" **Maybe he feels responsible in his own way." Hyuga said. "Besides it doesn't look like he's sleeping, rather it looks like he's saving up every last bit of his energy."**

"Yep" Kagami said. Aomine yawned. "Can't we just skip to the match?"* he asked. "No!" Everyone said.

" **Excuse me" Kuroko said. "I'm going to the bathroom."**

" **I'll come with you" Koganei said.**

 **In the washroom, Takao was there.**

"They're planning to show everything aren't they?" Takao said. Kuroko agreed.

' **Honestly, what a surprise.' He thought 'I didn't think Seirin would make it.' At that moment, Kuroko and Koganei came into the washroom.**

"Speak of the devil and he will come to you." Everyone said with amusement.

 **Takao naturally noticed Kuroko. "Oh" he said. Kuroko stopped walking and looked at Takao with surprised. "Hey" Takao said.**

"Must have been quite shocking for you." Izuki said to Kuroko. Kuroko hummed. "Usually people start to notice me after our first encounter." He said. "Takao-kun was the first to notice me at our first encounter. Even Akashi-kun was surprised the first time we met."**

"Yes, Kazunari does have incredible eyes." Akashi said. Takao gave a smug smile.

 **Koganei was surprised. Kuroko recomposed himself and said "Hello"**

" **Oh? An upperclassman." Takao said noticing Koganei. "Are you going to the washroom together? I look forward to playing you in the next game."**

' **He noticed Kuroko walking behind him?' Koganei thought. The screen showed the stands full of audience as the next game was about to begin.**

" **Ten minutes left." Otsubo said.**

" **Let's go!" Hyuga said.**

" **Midorima…" Otsubo called out. Midorima was still sitting.**

" **Sorry" he said. "Go on ahead."**

" **Kagami-kun" Kuroko called out to Kagami who was still sleeping. "It's time." Kagami woke up.**

 **Finally alone in the locker room, Midorima let his thoughts go free. 'Kuroko, and his new light, Kagami.' Midorima closed his eyes. 'I did not miss a day of shooting. I did not slack of at practice.'**

"Aomine should take a leaf out of his book." Wakamatsu mumbled.

' **My left hand care is the same. Today's horoscope for Cancer is no. 1.'**

"Mention one more time that I lost and I will curse you with Oha-asa." Midorima said to Aomine. Aomine shut up. Last time Midorima cursed him with Oha-asa, it was the worst day in his entire life. That's all he'll say.

' **I even brought today's lucky item, a raccoon shigaraki.'**

"Where the hell do you even find your lucky items?" Kimura asked. Midorima choose not to answer.

' **I tied the laces of my right shoe first. I have done everything.' Midorima opened his eyes.**

" **Let's go" Kagami said as he got off the bench.**

" **Yes" Kuroko said. As Midorima walked out of the locker room, Takao was waiting for him.**

" **You're late" Takao said. "The senpais already left."**

 **The screen showed the courts. It showed Seiho was also an audience to this game.**

 **Shutoku was standing in a circle. "Honestly, I don't think many would have believed Seirin would make it this far." Otsubo said.**

Seirin yawned.

" **The King of North losing can only be called an upset. However, it is nothing more than just that."**

"For some reason, I am getting this feeling that you are underestimating them." Okamura said to Otsubo. "Yeah, well, Karma certainly got us back for that." Otsubo said.

" **For us, nothing changes. Whether we are dealing with a tiger or rabbit, there is only one thing a lion can do. Crush them with all our might! As usual, we must win!"**

" **Yeah!" The Shutoku team said with a lot of energy.**

 **Meanwhile on Seirin's side, Hyuga looked like he's too tired to even stand. "I'm beat" he said. "I have been feeling melancholy since this morning. We got two games in a row, both against kings. And while playing against Seiho, all I could think about was the next game."**

"WHAT KIND OF A PREP TALK IS THAT!?" Every school yelled out.

"The Seirin kind" Hyuga answered casually.

 **Hyuga was smiling now. "But there is only one game now." he said. "We don't have worry about bothersome crap like the next game or reserving energy. We can focus on the one thing we have to do! Give everything we have until we can't give anymore!"**

" **Yeah!" Seirin said.**

" **Line up!" the referee yelled.**

' **He quieter than I expected' Hyuga thought about Kagami. Kuroko stared at Kagami.**

" **I didn't think you would actually make it this far." Midorima said catching Kuroko's attention.**

"No, but you were certainly hoping for it." Everyone said. Midorima ignored them

" **But it ends here. No matter how small, weak, or unknown, any team can fight as long as they are together. That is an illusion." Kuroko said nothing.**

" **Come" Midorima told him. "I will show you just how foolish your choice is."**

" **No one knows what the right decision in life is and that is not the reason why I made my choice." Kuroko said. "Also if I may disagree with you on one thing, it's that Seirin is not weak." The other players were listening to what Kuroko and Midorima were discussing. "We will not lose." Kuroko told Midorima.**

"Nicely said, Kuroko." Kiyoshi said.

 **Midorima glared at Kuroko. "Will Seirin, miraculously, beat two kings in a row, or will Shutoku protect it's rightful throne?" Kasamatsu said. "It's all decided here."**

 **The referee announced the start of the match as the two teams bowed. "The championship game!"**

Everyone moved in closer to their seats.

" **Huh? Is Kuroko the only one you need to talk to?" Takao asked Midorima. "What about Kagami?"**

" **There is no need" Midorima said. "There is no reason for me to talk to someone who played such a pathetic game. If you want to say something to me, show it to me in the game."**

 **Kagami smiled "Right back at you." he said. "Just thinking about it, makes me mad myself. I've got tons of pent up frustration, so let's do this already. I've turned it all into fight for you." Hyuga and Kuroko looked at Kagami with a wary expression.**

 **Midorima narrowed his eyes even more. "What did you say?" he said. "Do your worst."**

"Midorimacchi...is not as mature as he makes himself to be...is he?" Kise asked slowly. "Nope" his former teammates said while Midorima glared at Kise.

 **The ball was thrown for the tip-off. Kagami beat Otsubo and the ball is in Seirin's position. It was passed to Izuki by Mitobe, who was looking for a pass target but no one was available.**

' **They're quick' Izuki thought. 'We wanted to do a run and gun to make a quick shot but…'**

"Run and gun is your strong point." Miyaji said. "So naturally, we couldn't have you do that."

" **There's no gap in their defense." Furi said.**

" **One! Take care!" Fukuda shouted but Riko immediately rejected it.**

" **Matching stronger opponents is like giving them control of the game!" she said. "Attack them during the first quarter! You have to..."**

 **The screen showed Kuroko evading Kimura with his misdirection. "...greet them by storm!"**

Shutoku snorted. 'They definitely managed to do that.'

 **Izuki passed the ball to Kuroko who passed it Kagami. Kagami was already in the air getting ready to dunk the ball in. "That's…" Kimura said**

' **The same thing they did against me.' Kise thought. 'An alley-oop.'**

Kagami thought for a moment. "Now that I think about it," he said. "We won most of our matches thanks to an alley-oop...didn't we?" Kuroko blinked. "We did" he said. "I'm impressed Kagami-kun. I didn't think you had the mental capabilities to remember that." Kagami eyebrows twitched while everyone coughed to hide their laughter.

 **Seirin rejoiced at the thought they got the first point but Midorima blocked it.**

"Well done, Midorima." Kimura said.

 **The ball went to Takao's hand. "I knew you could do it, Shin-chan" Takao said.**

" **Impossible" Iwamura said.**

' **He can block that?' Riko was shocked.**

" **How disappointing" Midorima said. "You think you can beat us with that?" Kagami glared at Midorima.**

 **Takao was running to the other end of the court. Izuki came to stop him, so Takao passed the ball to Kimura who went for the shot but Hyuga was able to stop it.**

"Good Work, Hyuga" Kiyoshi said.

 **Seirin sighed as the ball missed the net. The game continued.**

" **Oh man" Kusaga said. "They're stuck in equilibrium."**

" **A basketball game is 40 minutes long." Iwamura said. "The game is broken into 4, 10 minute quarters. Basically, the flow of the game changes 3 times. However in other words..."**

" **Once your opponent takes control of the game, it's very difficult to take it back during the same quarter." Kasamatsu took over. "It's almost two minutes without either team scoring. At this rate, whoever scores first, will take the first quarter."**

 **The screened showed the court where Seirin tried to score but failed. Otsubo got the ball and yelled "Run-and-gun." Takao got the ball. Hyuga came to block him but Takao passed the ball behind him to Midorima who went for the shot.**

"Here it comes." Hyuga said as the memory flashed through his head.

' **Are you planning to score a three pointer from there?' Hyuga thought. As the ball went through the air, Midorima walked back to his side of the court.**

 **Kagami looked at the ball in despair. Kuroko ran by him. "Keep running." he said.**

Shutokou grimaced as a certain memory flew through their brains. Meanwhile the other schools leaned in. 'Something is definitely going to happen."

 **The ball went in. 'Crap' Hyuga thought as Riko gritted her teeth.**

" **The balance is broken!" Kise said. "Shutoku is now in control!" At that moment, Kuroko took the ball in his hand and started to spin. Midorima stopped and turned to look back. At that moment, Kuroko released the ball. The ball zoomed past Midorima's shocked face, missing it by a few inches and straight into Kagami's waiting hands.**

' **What?' Midorima thought as his eyes widened.**

 **As soon as he got the ball, Kagami dunked it in.**

"HOLY HELL!" Everyone, including those that witnessed the match, said. Their eyes were widened in amazement. "Ah yes" Midorima said staring at Kuroko. "I never really thanked you for that wonderful greeting...did I?"

"Midorima-kun was kind enough to bless us with such a lovely greeting so naturally I had to return it." Kuroko said.

"Tetsuya" Akashi called out. "There was no reason for the ball to so close to Shintarou's face, was there?"

"Ah no" Kuroko said. "I did that on purpose." Everyone literally fell off their seats. "YOU WHAT!?" they asked as Midorima yelled. "KUROKO!" Kuroko huffed. "Midorima-kun's attitude was starting to tick me off so I showed it the only way I could." Kuroko said. "Besides, it's not like Midorima-kun had anything to fear. After all, ball control and accuracy are my strong points." Everyone stayed silent for a minute. All of a sudden, the GoM (except Midorima), The Uncrowned Generals, Kagami and Takao howled in laughter. Everyone else shook their heads in disbelief while Midorima glared at Kuroko.

 **Everyone, starting from Shutoku to Kuroko's teammates were shocked by what they witnessed. All of their mouths were wide open. The audience on the other hand loved it. "They got them back in one second!"**

" **Amazing!"**

" **What was that?" Koganei asked.**

" **It went from one side of the court to the other." Tsuchida said.**

"That was pass we were trying to do during our training camp in Hawaii...right?***" Aomine asked Kuroko. Kuroko nodded. "You guys had a training camp...IN HAWAII?" Everyone asked. The GoM nodded while everyone stared with a jealous expression.

 **Midorima gritted his teeth as he stared fiercely at Kuroko. "Kuroko" he said.**

 **With his hair covering one of his eyes, Kuroko stared back at Midorima with determined eyes. "I'm sorry" he said. "But I can't have you take the first quarter that easily."**

"You are a badass" Everyone told Kuroko. Kuroko blinked. "Thank you" he said.

 **The screen went blank.**

"Thank goodness there are more episodes." Hayama said. "Otherwise I would have snapped."

 **The screen showed a picture of Iwamura, Kusaga and Tsugawa relaxing after a day of practice.**

"I wonder if I could get a copy of that photo." Otsubo said. "It would be nice if I could send a copy to Iwamura.

"Anyway…" Takao said. "Next episode please."

*There were times when I felt a lot like Aomine when I write these episodes.

**Some of you may say Akashi was the first one to notice Kuroko at their first encounter but if you look back at the scene when Kuroko and Akashi first met, you'll see that Akashi said "Two of you?" when Aomine mentioned he was practicing with Kuroko and his mouth opened a bit when he looked at the direction Kuroko was in, indicating that he was surprised by Kuroko's presence.

***In the lastest replace light novel there is a chapter called "Teikou goes to Hawaii"...I kid you not! It is real. Google search it and you will find it.

Anyway please R&R!


	16. Chapter 16

Hi Guys! Last chapter was a lot of fun to write. Hope you had fun reading it! Anyway I don't own KnB!

Episode 11

 **The episode started off with a preview of the last episode starting from the Seirin vs. Shutoku game. The screen showed the title screen "That's Not It."**

"Now that was an exciting preview." Imayoshi said. Everyone agreed.

 **The episode started by the showing everyone's reaction to Kuroko's cyclone pass. "They can pass like that?" Takao said in disbelief.**

 **From the stands everyone was shocked silent. "What was that?" Kusaga said. "Ichiro's laser beam? This is basketball!"**

Despite the serious mood, everyone couldn't help but chuckle.

' **I've never seen that before either.' Hyuga thought. 'But thanks to him, the flow of game hasn't changed at all. This game...'**

' **...is just…' Kuroko continued**

' **...getting started!' Kagami finished**

"Again people finishing other people's thoughts." Hayama said. "But you have to admit this one was pretty cool." Miyaji said. Hyuga, Kagami and Kuroko did a peace sign simultaneously.

 **The game continued with Shutoku possessing the ball. Miyaji passed it to Midorima. Midorima was about to do a three pointer but he noticed Kuroko heading for his basket so he passed the ball instead.**

"Ha! Tetsu scared you!" Aomine said with laughter. "As if you haven't been scared of Kuroko before." Midorima snarled at him. "May I remind you of a certain practice of our second year?" Aomine immediately zipped his mouth. The practice that Midorima was referring to, was the practice when Aomine saw Kuroko mad for the first. Let's just say that had Akashi's other self had been present...he would have been pleasantly surprised.

" **Midorimacchi you could've easily made that shot." Kise said from the stands with a confused expression.**

" **I see" Kasamatsu said.**

" **Huh?" Kise said looking at his senpai.**

"Ryouta, you have to be very observant for your perfect copy, right?" Akashi asked Kise. "Yep" Kise said. "And yet you can't figure something like this out?" Akashi asked. "I'm beginning to question your ability."

"Akashicchi, so mean!" Kise wailed. Everyone else was trying not to laugh or laughing like no tomorrow.

 **The screen shifted to Shotoku's bench. Shotoku's coach hummed "I was already surprised by how little presence he has, but he can pass like that as well." he said. "They can shut down Midorima that way." The coach hummed some more as he narrowed his eyes. "What should we do?"**

" **Midorimacchi's been shut down?" Kise said as he leaned into the rails.**

" **Yeah, with that kid's long distance spinning pass." Kasamatsu said. "Midorima's team return to defense, during the long hang time of his shots and that's good for run and gun plays. However not everyone goes back."**

"As expected of a national point guard." Shutoku said.

" **Just in case he misses, they keep a few people by the net to get the rebound." Kasamatsu said. "That hang time bites them in the ass."**

"That's for certain." Shutoku said.

" **If Midorima can go back, Kagami can also go back." Kasamatsu continued. "They can counter Midorima with a super fast break by running past him. That's why Midorima can't shoot." The screen demonstrated everything Kasamatsu had said.**

"These demonstrations are really amazing." Susa said. "Yes it makes thing easy for the "not so sharp" to understand." Fukai said. Everyone simultaneously looked at Kagami and Aomine. "What?" they said in perfect sync. No one said anything.

" **But the timing and decision to show us that pass…" Kasamatsu said. "The confidence to get it in one shot. It's reaffirming." Kise stared at his senpai. "I can see how he played with you at Teikou. He's a battle-hardened warrior."**

Everyone who knows Kuroko and faced him completely agreed with Kasamatsu. Meanwhile Kuroko scratched his cheek in embarrassment and thank Kasamatsu for the compliment.

 **Takao smirked 'We can't have people think this is all it takes to shut us down.' Takao passed by Hyuga. Mitobe came up to stop him but he used his eyes to pass the ball to Otsubo. Otsubo took the ball and scored a basket.**

"Nicely done." Miyaji said.

 **Kuroko looked at his side and noticed the ball was heading his way. Kuroko leaned back to make sure the ball didn't hit him. While the ball was still in front of him, Kuroko noticed Mitobe was asking for the ball behind him. So he passed it to Mitobe who scored a basket.**

"Oh come on!" Takao complained. "That practically made my last play look like nothing!" Everyone tried not to laugh.

" **Seirin's passes don't make any sense! But they are amazing." Someone in the audience said.**

" **This is it." Nakatani said after he observed Kuroko. "Takao, Kimura, switch marks." He told Takao to mark Kuroko.**

' **He's marking Kuroko?' Hyuga thought.**

" **It doesn't matter who's on him." Furihata said.**

" **He's so invisible anyone would lose him." Kawahara said.**

"We certainly were in for a surprise." Fukuda said. Everyone in Seirin agreed.

' **They are already taking the direct approach.' Riko thought. 'What are they trying to do?'**

 **The screen showed Takao having the ball. He used his eyes to pass the ball to Miyaji. Miyaji took the ball and slipped through Seirin's defense. 'That pass!' Izuki thought with wide eyes. Miyaji scored a basket. 'He has it too!' Izuki realized as the screen showed flashback of Takao's passes.**

 **Takao run up to Kuroko. He came in front of Kuroko and started walking backwards. "I knew this would happen." Takao said. "Shin-chan would say it's our fate to fight against each other." They stopped walking and got into position. "I didn't think we would face each other so soon." Takao continued to speak. "It occurred to me the first time we met. You and I are the same kind of person."**

"That is true." Hyuga said thoughtfully. "Your techniques are different, but when it comes down to the basics, the two of you are the same."

" **We're both first years too. Passing is our bread and butter. So I guess you could say I hate you because you are like me. I just don't want to lose to you."**

Mayuzumi blinked as he remembered something from the finals. "Ah" Kuroko said as if he realized something. He turned to Takao and said. "I never thank you for that speech."

"Huh?" Takao was confused. "Your speech helped me a lot during the finals." Kuroko said. Takao blinked. He didn't know what to say. "You're welcome...I guess." Everyone else was just as confused.

 **Kagami turned to look at Kuroko's direction. "What do you think you are doing?" Kagami asked. "No matter how fast Takao is, that's not the way to handle Kuroko."**

" **I'm already familiar with Kuroko's ability." Midorima said.**

"A disadvantage every single time we faced a GoM." Hyuga said. "They were never surprised by Kuroko's abilities."

"He still managed to surprise us." Akashi said. Hyuga snorted. "You have no idea how hard he worked to accomplish that." he said. "Yeah...he worked so hard he practically worn down 7 basketballs." Kagami added. Everyone was impressed by Kuroko's amount of dedication. 'Some of our kohais should really pick a leaf from Kuroko's book.' The other school seniors thought. Meanwhile, Kuroko was trying not make eye contact with anyone in the room. His cheeks were just a little pink.

" **You will see soon enough."**

 **Hyuga was aiming for a pass at Kuroko but Takao intercepted it and passed the ball to Kimura. Kimura passed the ball to Miyaji who scored a basket. Takao turned to look at Kuroko. "I've never felt this before, but I think it's because there is something different about you.**

 **Kuroko stared at Takao and blinked. "I'm sorry." he said.**

"Huh?" everyone said while Takao gave a small laugh.

" **No one has ever said that to me before, so I don't know what to say."**

"Ah" Everyone said. "It's the first time someone looked at you as a rival, isn't it?" Aomine asked Kuroko. "Yep" Kuroko said.

" **What?" Takao said with a blank look.**

"Here I was trying to act and sound cool and you just had to say something out of the blue like that." Takao said looking at Kuroko. "I'm sorry." Kuroko said. Takao sighed. Honestly, no matter how hard you tried you can't stay mad at Kuroko.

" **But I think I have a similar feeling." Kuroko said.**

" **That's good." Takao said regaining himself from Kuroko's sudden apology. "We are ready to go."**

 **During the time Takao had blinked, Kuroko disappeared. "Wait a minute!" he said in annoyance "How rude are you to suddenly disappear like that?"**

Kuroko rolled his eyes as some people laughed. "Takao-kun is very dramatic." he said. "Well...that's just who I am." Takao said with a wink and a peace sign.

" **Just kidding"**

 **Izuki had the ball. He passed the ball to Kuroko who was planning to pass the ball to Hyuga but Takao stopped it shocking Kuroko and his teammates. 'Seriously!' Kagami thought. Takao took the ball and scored a basket.**

" **Too bad Kuroko" Midorima said.**

" **That's the first time he failed." Hyuga said.**

" **That wasn't a mistake." Izuki said. "Takao's got the same type of eyes as me. No...he's hawk eye field of vision is even larger than mine."**

Izuki grumbled. This year, his goal is to make his eyes even better than Takao's if it's possible.

 **Hyuga was surprised. "Kuroko's misdirection relies on redirecting the gaze of other players. However, the hawk eye allows him to see everything. He's not just trying to watch Kuroko. In other words, Kuroko's misdirection doesn't work on Takao."**

'And yet he still outsmarted me.' Takao thought in annoyance.

 **Serin called for time out. 'I can't believe he can follow Kuroko.' Hyuga thought.**

' **I didn't think there was anyone like that.' Riko thought. 'We're in trouble.'**

 **The screen shifted to Shutoku. "Uh oh" Takao said. "Seirin's in trouble."**

" **Don't let your guard down." Midorima said. "Kuroko will not go down so easily."**

" **It's fine." Takao said. "Once you take away his lack of presence, he is worthless."**

"If there is anything, anyone of us learned from the finals, it is that Kuroko is more than just a lack of presence." Kagami said.

"Please forgive my ignorant self for what he just said." Takao said to Seirin. "It's fine." Kuroko said. "Those were time when someone has to prove their worth in order to earn respect."

" **Do you know why I don't like him?" Midorima asked Takao.**

Midorima's eyes widened while Kuroko leaned in. This was something Kuroko always wanted to know.

" **Because I respect Kuroko."**

"What?" Almost everyone said. Meanwhile Kuroko blinked, of all the things he was expecting Midorima to say, that was not one of them. Midorima on the other hand, wanted to destroy the screen.

" **He has no physical strengths. He cannot do anything by himself. Despite that, he wore the same uniform as the rest of us at Teikou and led the team to victory."**

'I didn't really do anything that important.' Kuroko thought as he scratched his cheek. 'Besides, we won the championship together.'

" **His abilities are nothing like ours. His strengths are of another kind. That is why I don't like him. Because a man I respect has chosen to bury himself with a team that cannot fully utilize his abilities."**

The occupants in the room didn't know what to say. Even if they did want to say something, they were too scared of the look Midorima was giving. "So, now that my team has proven themselves, does that mean you don't hate me as much?" Kuroko asked Midorima. For someone who is very observant, he doesn't seem to notice Midorima's mood. "I guess." Midorima said. Right now, he wanted nothing more than to bury the screen.

 **The screen shifted back to Seirin. Kagami put his hand on Kuroko's head. "Hey, don't tell me you're going to keep letting get them to you." he said.**

 **Kuroko turned to look at him. "Well, I suppose I don't like it." he said.**

"You suppose?" Everyone said.

" **That's what I like to hear!" Kagami said. He turned to Riko. "Coach!" Riko turned to look at him. "Let us keep going like this, please."**

" **Like this?" Riko said.**

" **You know your misdirection won't work on Takao-kun right?" She said "Are you going to be okay?"**

" **I'm...not okay." Kuroko said. "I have a problem."**

'He's way too blunt!' Almost everyone thought.

" **Hmm...I see." Riko said. Realizing what Kuroko just said she asked. "I mean, what are you going to do about it?"**

 **The whistle blew to signal the end of the time out. "Take care of Takao." Kagami told Kuroko.**

" **Ok"**

 **The game resumed. "Hey" Takao said to Kuroko. "Did you come up with a plan?"**

" **I'm still thinking." Kuroko answered with complete honesty.**

'As I thought, he's way too blunt!' Almost everyone thought with a blank look. "You can't bluff...can you?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "Nope" Kuroko answered honestly. "It's not in my nature."

" **You're doing what?" Takao thought in amusement.**

' **As I thought, two games in a row are really hard.' Hyuga thought as he tried to dodge his mark. 'I'm already exhausted.'**

 **Izuki had the ball. He tried to pass it to Mitobe but Miyaji intercepted it. Miyaji passed the ball to Takao who scored a basket.**

Takao did a peace sign.

" **Are the upperclassmen short on breath?" Furi asked.**

" **It's okay." Riko said. "This game definitely depends on Kuroko-kun and Kagami-kun, who we had on reserve." Riko looked at her hand. "However that's not all."**

" **What is that?" Kawahara asked.**

" **One I broke before."**

" **Before?"**

" **After we lost last year."**

 **The screen flashed back to Hyuga talking to Riko.**

Hyuga paled as he realized what the screen was going to show. His figurines...his precious figurines…

" **How can I make shots even under pressure?" he asked Riko.**

" **Huh?" Riko said.**

" **All the players are around my age, and I am not a very good leader." Hyuga said. "I want to be able to lead everyone with my own play."**

 **Riko thought for a moment. "You have to get used to it." she said.**

" **Huh?"**

" **Always play under pressure and get used to it." Riko said. "For example, break one of your precious warrior figures for every shot you miss during practice."**

 **Hyuga thought for a** _ **long**_ **time. Finally with teary eyes, he said. "Okay I'll do it." The screen showed Hyuga carrying out his promise. For every single shot he missed, one of his figurines bites the dust and all Hyuga could do was cry out their names in despair.**

The Hyuga in room was behaving the same way as the one on the screen. "Wow...that's harsh." Everyone couldn't help but say they watched Hyuga.

 **The screen went back to the game. "Who cares about kings?" Hyuga said as he made a shot. "Go die!"**

 **His teammates on the bench looked either creeped out or exasperated. "His personality suffered a little, thought." Riko said.**

Everyone laughed as Kiyoshi said. "Nah, he was always like that." Hyuga jabbed him at the kidney. Kiyoshi still had a smile on his face but his eyebrows were twitching. 'He had it coming.' Everyone thought.

" **Hyuga-kun will always make important shots." Riko said.**

 **Miyaji had the ball, he passed it to Otsubo who went to pass it to Kimura. Kuroko came to divert the pass but Takao intercepted it.**

" **Stealing a steal!"**

' **It isn't like Kurokocchi to repeat his mistakes.' Kise thought.**

"Kise sometimes I really wonder about your so call observation skill." Kasamatsu told him dryly. "So mean!" Kise wailed.

" **What are you doing?" Midorima said. "We are doing everything we can." His teammates passed him the ball. "My shooting range isn't that short."**

"Show-off." All the GoM members said. Midorima huffed.

' **He's shooting from the center line?' Kagami thought.**

 **Midorima did a three pointer. The audience stared in amazement.**

' **His high arc increases his range.' Hyuga thought. 'This must be the bad feeling I had earlier.**

"I really need to pay attention to my gut feeling." Hyuga said.

' **The entire half court is within his range. This is Midorima's true strength.'**

"Not quite." Everyone said.

 **The timer showed 53 seconds remaining with Shutoku leading 16-11.**

" **As long as I'm back here, you cannot get me with Kuroko's passes." Midorima said after he ran to the other side of the court. Kagami and Kuroko stared at him with wide eyes.**

" **But it's irrelevant." Midorima said. "My shots are three points, and your counter is only two. Even if we do nothing, the gap will grow."**

 **Hyuga had the ball. He passed it to Kagami.**

" **You've got something interesting there." Kagami said. "But…" Kagami went for the shoot.**

' **A three pointer.' Midorima thought.**

' **I thought he wasn't good at outside shots.' Takao thought.**

' **If it goes in, it's fine.' Kagami thought as he ran towards the basket. 'If it misses…' The ball missed the hoop. "I'll dunk it myself!' Kagami dunked the ball in.**

"A one man alley-oop!?" Some people exclaimed. "Not bad."

" **That guy…" Kise said in amazement.**

 **Kagami's teammate complimented him for his shots. "So nice how nice it was." Izuki said.**

" **Izuki, seriously, stop." Hyuga said.**

Some people chuckled while Izuki pouted. "I guess now we know who's Seirin's straight man and funny man is." Miyaji said. "I thought it was Kagami and Kuroko." Kobori said. "Izuki and Hyuga are close seconds." Fukai said.

' **One basket behind.' Riko thought. The screen showed the scoreboard beside her. It showed there was only 15 seconds left in the quarter and Shutoku was ahead 16-13. 'At this rate, we might be able too…'**

 **Midorima had the ball. "That was a pretty good shot for you." he said. Midorima got ready for a three pointer. "However…"**

' **What is he doing?' Kagami thought. 'How many meters do you think you're…'**

"I told you before the entire court is my range." Midorima said. "I had no idea you loved to show off Shintarou." Akashi smirked at Midorima.

" **You're kidding!" Hyuga thought. As Midorima went for the shot, the screen showed the shock on every member of Seirin's basketball team.**

" **I told you it's not that short." Midorima said. "My shooting range is the entire court." Naturally, the ball went in. The referee blew his whistle. The first quarter is over.**

 **The screen showed Seirin's bench. The atmosphere surrounding the team was very heavy. 'Who makes that shot?' Riko thought "We got bigger things to worry about than the score.'**

" **Kuroko-kun, has he always been able to do?" Riko asked.**

"No" all of Midorima's former teammates said.

" **No" Kuroko said. "I only knew he could shoot as far as the halfway line. That's the first time I've seen him shoot from there."**

" **I've seen videos of NBA players making that kind of shot during practice." Izuki said with a bemused face. "But trying it in an actual game is ridiculous."**

"Well what do you expect from the GoM." Everyone except the GoM said.

" **The GoM are ridiculous." Hyuga said. He was equally bemused as Izuki.**

"Understatement of the century." Almost everyone said. The GoM just sighed.

" **How are we supposed to stop that?" Koganei asked.**

 **The screen shifted to Shotoku's bench. "They will try to stop Midorima first." Nakatani said. "There are few ways to do it, but let's see…"**

" **Coach" Midorima said. His coach looked at him. "Give me the ball during the entire second quarter."**

Miyaji twitched. "Oh yeah, I forgot this happened."

"Ah yes," Aomine said. "Mr. Selfish Megane." Midorima hit Aomine in the head with a newspaper.

 **Otsubo twitched. "Can I hit him?" Miyaji asked.**

" **Miyaji, why don't you hit him with a pineapple?" Kimura asked him.**

"Why a pineapple?" Everyone else asked. Miyaji was about start a lecture about how versatile a pineapple is for a weapon but Otsubo stopped him.

" **My family runs a produce store."**

 **Takao laughed. "Just how self-centered are you?" he asked.**

" **No matter how they come at us, I will shut them down."**

 **Nakatani thought for a moment. "Okay" he said. "Let's call it your third selfish wish for the day and do just that."**

 **The other members are shocked. Otsubo turned to Midorima. "You know that I'm at my limit right." he said. "I only agree since the coach said so, do what you want in the first half, but if we lose…"**

 **Midorima gulped.**

Midorima shifted away from his captain. That was certainly not a nice day for him.

 **The game resumed. Takao passed the ball to Midorima. Kuroko came to stop him.**

" **You think you can stop me with that?" Midorima asked. He pushed ahead. Kuroko tried to tip the ball but Takao stopped him.**

" **Don't do crude stuff like that." he said.**

" **Dammit" Kagami went up to stop him but Midorima was too quick and scored.**

 **Everyone of Kuroko and Kagami's attempts were foiled by Midorima and Takao.**

"You two make a good pair." Kise said.

"Kind of like the light and shadow pair we know." Imayoshi said staring at Kuroko and Kagami. Takao smiled while Midorima huffed.

 **As Midorima went for another shot, his mind flashed back to a memory from his middle school years.**

"Another one!?" Everyone said in surprise.

" **The coolest shot?" Kise said. He had an ice-cream in his hand.**

"We would always have ice-cream at a nearby convenience store after practice." Kise said with a nostalgic smile. The other GoM members were looking equally nostalgic.

" **That would be a dunk. It's best for the guy doing it and the people watching it!"**

" **That's why you are no good." Midorima told him. "Shooting from further away is obviously the best, since it's worth three points." Kise groaned.**

" **Midorima-kun, you are usually smart, but sometimes you can be stupid." Kuroko said not looking at Midorima. He was standing next to Midorima drinking a vanilla milkshake.**

Midorima's eyebrow twitched as everyone else chuckled. "You always have to insult us offhandedly, don't you?" Midorima said to Kuroko with an annoyed expression. Kuroko looked at Midorima and blinked innocently while drinking his milkshake. This caused Midorima to be more annoyed.

" **What?" Midorima said looking at Kuroko.**

" **Kurokocchi, so blunt!" Kise said.**

" **Between two and three points, more is obviously better." Midorima told Kuroko.**

" **What are you, a child?" Kuroko said as he turned to look at Midorima.**

"Kuroko!" Seirin exclaimed in shock as everyone else (except Midorima) howled in laughter. Takao in particular was loving this.

 **Midorima smiled. "The truth is simple. I will prove it to you someday."**

 **The screen went back to the game with Midorima making his shot.**

"That flashback was more entertaining than I remembered." Akashi said with an amused smile "Yeah" Aomine said. "But they cut out the rest of the flashback."

"There was more!?" the other team asked. "Well, yeah" Aomine. "Me and Murasakibara also got into the argument as well."

" **Izuki pass me the ball." Hyuga said. Izuki passed the ball to Hyuga who passed it to Mitobe. Mitobe went for a hook shot and made a basket.**

" **No matter how many times you score, you won't be able to stop my shoot." Midorima** **said. He went for another shot. Kagami jumped to stop him but Midorima was able to shoot.**

' **At this rate, I'm more worried about my heart rather than my score.' Hyuga thought as the ball went in.**

" **This is bad!" Kasamatsu said. "Seirin's at their limit."**

 **Kagami smiled. Hyuga turned to look at Kagami. 'He's strong' Kagami thought. 'This is Midorima.'**

 **Kagami laughed. 'Kagami always laugh when he's up against a strong opponent, but something is not right.' Hyuga thought.**

 **The screen zoomed in to show Kuroko staring at Kagami with a worried expression. Than, the screen showed Kagami surrounded by ominous black and red aura.**

 **The screen went blank.**

"What?" Those that were not in the match said.

"Next episode." Hyuga said. "Kuroko knocking some sense into our resident Bakagami." Kagami gave a sheepish look while everyone else was even more confused.

 **The screen turned on again. It showed Takao. He was listening to music with his eyes closed. "What are you doing?" someone asked him. Takao opened his eyes and noticed it was Midorima. "Listening to this new single of a band I like." Takao said. "Wanna listen?"**

" **No thanks." Midorima said.**

" **Oh come one!" Takao said. "One song won't hurt."**

" **Fine" Midorima said as he took a headphone and listened.**

"How cute" some said. Midorima glared while Takao gave a sheepish smile.

Done! My computer crashed. So it will take a while before I can update the next chapter. I uploaded this from another computer. Please R&R!


	17. Chapter 17

Hi Guys! I'm sorry for not updating for a long time! It's just that my laptop crashed but now I am here and ready to make an update!

Episode 12

 **The episode started with Midorima making his long range 3 pointer. The screen showed the title of the episode "What is Victory?"**

Some of the GoM shifted.

 **The screen showed the sky becoming cloudy as thunder rumbled in. Slowly drops of water fell into the ground quickly transforming into a heavy rainstorm. The screen changed back to the court. The first half was done and the courts was being prepared for the second half. The audience were starting to think the game was over since Shutoku pulled ahead.**

" **Show some spirit, Seirin." Kise said.**

" **They are you idiot." Kasamatsu said. "After being shown such a difference in strength they are still barely hanging in there."**

"Honestly, I don't anyone would have expected you to win the way you did." Kasamatsu said.

 **Kise's phone dropped to the ground. The radio somehow turned on. The Oha-asa horoscope program was currently on right now. The screen showed Midorima holding his lucky item and looking at Kise's direction as if he could hear Oha-asa.**

"Could you actually hear my phone from Shutuko's bench, Midorimacchi?" Kise asked. "Yes, I could." Midorima said. "I missed some parts of the program so thank you for that Kise."

'It's not like I intentionally did it for you.' Kise thought in exasperation. 'Great! Now I sound like Midorimacchi.'

 **The screen changed to Shotoku's locker room. "The other team hasn't give up." Nakatani said. "Otsubo, play offensively during the second half." Meanwhile, Midorima was looking at his nails.**

" **What are you doing?" Takao asked him. "You didn't even listen to the coach."**

" **As you can see, I am fixing my nails." Midorima said. "My shots depend on my nails."**

 **Someone hit their foot on Midorima's lucky item. It was Kimura.**

"That hurts." Kimura said. "I wouldn't have been surprised if I banged my toes."

" **I've been wondering this whole time." Kimura said holding up his injured toe. "But what's the big deal with this racoon?" He asked.**

" **It's my lucky item." Midorima said.**

" **Huh?" Kimura said. "This thing was on the bench during the entire first half. It's in the way."**

" **Why don't we break it?" Miyaji asked with a smile. "Let's break it!"**

Everyone laughed while Midorima made a mental note to keep his lucky items away from Miyaji.

 **Meanwhile back in Seirin's locker room, everyone was extremely quiet. Riko was thinking of ways to lift the team spirits.**

Some people snorted at the things Riko thought.

 **Before she could say anything, Hyuga stopped her. "You're probably going to say something stupid again, anyway."**

"Captain that is mean." Kuroko said. 'I don't want to hear that from you.' Hyuga thought.

" **Read the situation." Riko stopped talking. 'I appreciate you trying to cheer us up but honestly, I can't imagining us winning.' Hyuga thought.**

 **Meanwhile, Kuroko was looking at a something in the camera. "Kuroko, what are you doing?" Izuki asked.**

" **Someone taped Takao-kun during the first half." Kuroko said.**

"Me" Furi said.

" **Do you have a plan?" Izuki asked.**

" **I don't know." Kuroko said in complete honesty.**

" **You don't know?" Izuki asked with wide eyes.**

" **I have thought about winning, but I have never wondered if I would win or not." Kuroko said.**

'Well...when you have teammates like the GoM…' everyone except said group thought.

" **Even if we lose by a hundred points, there's a chance a meteor will strike the other team's bench at the last second."**

Everyone laughed. "Tetsuya, you say the weirdest things sometimes." Akashi said with an amused smiled.

" **You're right." Izuki said. Everyone except Kagami nod in agreement.**

" **Don't give me that!" Hyuga said. "There isn't going to be a meteor."**

"That's what you chose to focus on!" Everyone else exclaimed.

" **That's a crazy thought!"**

" **But what if they all get stomach aches?" Tsuchida asked.**

Shutoku snorted. "Shin-chan's dad is a doctor so that is highly unlikely." Takao said.

" **Don't get carried away. That won't happen either." Hyuga said.**

" **Compare to that, a second half comeback is way more realistic." Koganei said.**

" **Let's keep running and tink after the game is over." Hyuga said. The third quarter begins. Kuroko was sitting on the bench.**

" **Kurokocchi is on the bench?" Kise said.**

" **Well he can't do anything while Takao is there." Kasamatsu said. "But they don't even have a strategy."**

 **Coach Nakatani looked over Seirin's bench. "Well they can't help it." He said. "Conventional strategies won't work, but to use an unconventional strategy, they'll need something to make it happen. However…"**

' **Something...We just need some kind of opening.' Riko thought.**

' **Unfortunately, no such opening exists.' Nakatani thought as if he could read Riko's thought.**

"Yeah, they must be Mitobe." Koganei said. "Otherwise how else can they read each other's mind."

'The same way you can read Mitobe.' Everyone else thought.

' **What's this?' Takao thought 'I thought they would try a little harder.'**

' **Their eyes aren't all dead yet, but what is this?' Midorima thought. 'This is more than just not giving up.'**

 **The game resumed with Mitobe having the ball. He passed the ball to Hyuga. "Hyuga-senpai, behind you!" Furi called out. Takao back tipped the ball from Hyuga.**

"I really need to pay more attention." Hyuga said.

 **The ball went to Midorima who went for a three pointer. Kagami jumped to try and stop him. 'When did he?' Midorima thought. 'No, more importantly…' Midorima was still able to make his shot.**

' **I won't lose!' Kagami thought. 'More...more…'**

"This is the reason why Kuroko has to hit you." Hyuga said with a sigh. Kagami felt an arrow stab his back. "Sorry Kuroko." He said.

 **Izuki had the ball but all of a sudden it looked like the ball slipped from his hand.**

"What?" Everyone said while Izuki smiled smugly.

 **The ball went to Koganei's hand who Izuki must have saw with his eagle eye.**

"Ah" Everyone said

" **Good!" Kawahara said. "They didn't expect that!"**

" **And Koganei-senpai can shoot from anywhere." Fukuda said.**

"Yeah but isn't his accuracy average?" Fukai asked. Koganei mopped in depression.

 **Koganei went for the shot and made a basket. "Good, he made it this time!" One of the trio said.**

" **Why do you have to say that?" Koganei shouted at the bench.**

"It's a pretty valid statement if you ask me." Susa said as everyone else laughed.

 **Takao had the ball now. 'Otsubo-san is open but Kagami-kun, you're not guarding Midorima close enough.' He thought.**

Kagami huffed.

 **He went to pass the ball to Midorima. Izuki tried to stop him but failed. Midorima got the ball and went for a three pointer. As that happened Kagami thought about what Kuroko said.** _ **"I have thought about winning, but I have never wondered if I could win or not."**_

' **You don't give up until the very end.' Kagami thought. 'But that means if you give everything you have and you still can't do it, you accept the loss.'**

"Yes, that right. I accept the loss because losing a match plays just as big of a role as winning a match in basketball." Kuroko said. "Besides the main reason why I play basketball isn't to win, it's because I enjoy playing basketball. After all, isn't that the reason why most of us started playing in the first place."

"That is true, it's great if you have talent and it's even better if you can win with that talent, but you should never forget that basketball is a team sport." Kiyoshi said. "There are other people who wants to win just as much as you do. Which is why you should show respect to not only your own team but your opponents as well. Especially if they lost because they tried as hard as you but couldn't get the result that you got. So go and have fun.~" Some people almost took Kiyoshi seriously if it hadn't been for the last line.

"Way to ruin the mood, Iron-heart." Hyuga muttered.

' **Playing against an opponent who's impossible to beat excites me, but ultimately…' Kagami thought as he began to jump. 'There's no point if I don't win.' Kagami jumped and had almost reached the ball in Midorima's hand. Midorima released the ball but Kagami's fingertips was barely able to touch the ball.**

' **Ridiculous. Is this even possible?' Midorima thought. 'He's been getting higher and higher all game.' For the first time in the game, the ball had touched the rim before it went in. This surprised the players on court and everyone who knew Midorima's ability.**

" **That was close." Takao said.**

" **That's the first time I saw Midorima's shot go in like that." Kimura said.**

"We should have known something was up." Miyaji said.

' **There's our opening!' Riko thought.**

 **Kagami walked past Midorima. "Oi" Midorima called out to him. "What is your star sign?"**

" **Me?" Kagami said. "I'm a Leo." The screen flashback to Oha-asa warning Cancer's about Leos.**

"Serves you right for not reading the team files with us." Takao said. "If you did then you would've known Kagami was a Leo and probably wouldn't have lost because you would be more cautious." Midorima gave him a glare full of venom.

" **That horoscope is always right." Midorima said.**

"Except when it comes to Kuroko." Midorima said. "It's always wrong when Kuroko is involved in a situation." Which is why Midorima and him just can't see eye to eye.

 **The game resumed with Hyuga getting the ball. He went for a three point of his own and it went in. 'Don't lose focus!' He thought. 'If you do it's over.'**

" **He might not be as good as Midorima, but he does make a lot of shots." Iwamura said.**

" **He's the one who finished us off." Kusaga said.**

Hyuga felt a little proud.

" **Well done, but Midorima is unstoppable." Takao said. He was holding the ball. Everyone else got into position. The formation was box-one. Midorima passed Kagami and got the ball.**

" **This is the only to stop Midorima, since he can shoot from anywhere." Hyuga said.**

 **The game went to flashback with Kagami practicing in the rain. 'I won my game against Kise, but that was only because of Kuroko.' Kagami thought. 'I didn't win by myself.'**

"Does it matter how you win?" Izuki asked. "A win's a win."

' **If that's what it takes to win than it's fine. But what if Kuroko is not around?' Kagami thought as the screen showed various moments of Seirin vs. Kaijou. 'If Kuroko's basketball doesn't work in the future, will I lose?'**

"Baka, what are we, chopped liver?" Hyuga said hitting Kagami on the head.

 **The screen went back to the game. 'No! I refuse to lose!' Kagami thought.**

' **It's no use.' Takao thought. 'He and Kuroko couldn't stop him in the first quarter. Besides...' Midorima went past Kagami after Takao came to block him.**

" **It's two on one!" Takao said.**

" **I'll still stop you." Kagami said. "Thanks to all the time you've shown me, I've finally found your weakness!" Kagami bypassed Takao. Midorima got ready for a shot.**

" **The longer the shot," Kagami said as he jumped. "The longer it takes to make the shot!" Midorima released the ball and once again Kagami's fingertips barely touched the ball.**

' **He touched it again?' Midorima thought with wide eyes. 'Impossible!'**

"Taiga's true potential is awakening" Akashi said. "Tell me Tetsuya were you aware of Taiga's potential when you picked him as your light?"

"I had a hunch." Kuroko said.

' **Shooting a heavy basketball more than 20 meters is normally impossible. It takes an unusually long amount of time to make the shot.' Takao thought. 'But wait, I got him off with a screen…'**

 **Hyuga noticed something was off with the ball's trajectory. 'Could it be…?' The ball bounced of the net.**

"First time I saw Midorimacchi's shot do something like that." Kise said. Aomine snorted. "I thought I would never see the day Midorima's shot does something like that and on one his "lucky days". Midorima gave them both a venomous glare. When...oh when is this match ending!?

 **Mitobe jumped up to get the ball but Otsubo got it before him and dunked the ball in. 'That's right, Shutoku still has him!' Hyuga thought 'One of Tokyo's best centre, Otsubo Taisuke.'**

'I was only able to get it because I didn't do much during the second half.' Otsubo thought.

' **I had Koganei-kun take Kuroko-kun's place to stop Midorima-kun with Kagami-kun but at this rate…' Riko thought.**

 **Hyuga had the ball and he passed it to Koganei. Koganei tried to shot but Otsubo blocked the ball. It hit Koganei's stomach.**

"Sorry." Otsubo said to Koganei. "It's fine." Koganei said.

 **The ball went to Miyaji who passed it to Takao. Takao noticed Mitobe and Hyuga were double teaming Otsubo. "Not bad" Coach Nakatani said.**

' **Maybe this way' Takao thought as he passed the ball to Midorima. 'He's closer this time. He won't need as much time.'**

 **Midorima was getting ready to make his shot. Kagami rushed to stop him. 'I noticed it when he made that last alley-oop against me.' Kise thought. 'The strength to stand against the GoM, and one of the greatest weapons in basketball.'**

' **His hidden ability is' The screen showed Kagami jumping to stop Midorima's shot. 'His innate jumping power!' This time Kagami was able to block Midorima's shot.**

"Definitely a bad matchup for Shintaro." Akashi said. 'Now I know how Kise felt watching the Seirin vs. Kaijou match.' Midorima thought. 'It is very brutal to watch yourself lose a match.' Kise thought as if he could read what Midorima was thinking.

 **Izuki went to get the ball. "There is always a drawback, no matter how strong the ability." He said.**

"Well said Izuki/Izuki-senpai/Izuki-san/Izuki-kun." Almost everyone said.

 **Izuki got the ball. "They have another weakness."**

" **Of course" Kasamatsu said. 'Since he can shot so far away, their own goal is that much closer if they manage to block the shot.'**

 **Izuki put the ball into the net. 'It's the perfect opportunity for a counterattack!'**

"I guess that's what you call "A Thing You Wouldn't Notice Despite It Being So Obvious."" Imayoshi said.

' **I can't just rely on Kuroko and the upperclassmen' Kagami thought.**

"~Kagamicchi is starting to arrogant.~" Kise said. "Shut up!" Kagami yelled. "It's true." Kise said with a shrug.

" **Takao, give me the ball!" Otsubo told Takao.**

" **Huh? But Otsubo-san they are double-teaming you…" Takao said.**

" **It doesn't matter!" Otsubo interrupted him.**

"Sorry Takao, I shouldn't have lost my cool like that." Otsubo said. "It's fine." Takao said.

 **Otsubo got the ball and was going to dunk it in. Kagami ran towards him. 'I'll become stronger.' He thought. 'Strong enough to win without relying on others.'**

"Baka" Hyuga said hitting Kagami on the head. "Basketball is a team sport. You are supposed to rely on others."

"There is no "I" in team, Taiga" Himuro said to Kagami in English.

"I know!" Kagami huffed. 'Just hurry up with the punch already!' He thought glaring at the T.V.

 **Kagami jumped and swat the ball from Otsubo's hand. 'So high!' Otsubo thought.**

' **And fast!' Midorima thought. 'How did he close the gap so suddenly?'**

" **Foul! Black 10!" The referee said.**

' **I'll win! Even if I have to do it myself!' Kagami thought.**

"Pay attention to what the referee is saying, you idiot!" Hyuga said hitting Kagami on the head. 'How many times have I been hit on the head now?' Kagami thought. 'I'm not a punching bag, goddamit!'

" **Kagami's amazing!" Kawahara said. "With him, we could…"**

" **You think so?" Kuroko said.**

" **Huh?" Furi said.**

" **If he continues like this, I have about what will happen." Kuroko said.**

Kagami flinched as he now realized that he might have made Kuroko experienced a painful memory. "Sorry, Kuroko." Kagami muttered. Kuroko was able to hear him. "It's in the past, so it doesn't matter now." Kuroko said with a small kind smile.

 **Kagami had the ball and passed Midorima.**

' **What the hell is up with this guy?' Miyaji thought.**

' **Are you telling me a guy who just graduated from middle school is pressuring our team?' Kimura thought.**

"Generation of Miracles" Almost everyone said to Kimura. "Oh yeah, I forgot about those guys." Kimura said. 'For some reason, I feel offended.' The GoM thought.

' **I've never seen anyone like this in the whole country.' Otsubo thought as Kagami jumped to dunk the ball in.**

"That's because I'm a returnee from America." Kagami said.

 **Everyone in Seirin's bench stared at Kagami in amazement except for Kuroko.**

" **You're amazing, Kagami." Koganei told him.**

" **Could you please pass the ball to me more?" Kagami asked.**

"Looks like Kagami-kun is finally showing his selfish side." Kuroko said with a teasing smile. "Shut Up!" Kagami yelled with a somewhat embarrassed face.

' **I can't believe he can stop Midorima.' Takao thought. 'Even if the time for him to take a shot is a weakness, I can't believe he can block such a high shot.'**

' **Don't get ahead of yourselves just because you've blocked one of Midorima's shot.' Miyaji thought. He had the ball in his hand. He was going for a shot…**

" **Miyaji-san, don't!" Takao said. "That position…"**

 **...but Kagami swat the ball away from his hand. The ball went to Hyuga hand who passed it to Kagami. Kagami jumped to put the ball in the net. Kimura jumped to stop him but he started to fall down while Kagami continued to jump higher.**

' **Don't be ridiculous!' Kimura thought. 'How much longer are you going to keep jumping?'**

 **Kagami shot the ball and it went in. The screen showed the scoreboard, with a minute and 35 seconds in the game, Seirin was a single digit away.**

' **With a jump like that, I can't believe this guy is Japanese.' Nakatani thought.**

"That is true." Kuroko said. "Kagami-kun doesn't really look like a typical Japanese person."

"Huh!?" Kagami said. "If anyone deserves the comment of "not being a typical Japanese" it's Ahomine." Aomine frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Then let me rephrase it and say both Aomine-kun and Kagami-kun don't look like a typical Japanese person." Kuroko said.

"How is that any better!?/Tetsu!" Kagami and Aomine said simultaneously. 

" **Coach, we have to do something…" One of the players from the bench said. "At this rate.."**

" **Don't worry" Nakatani said.**

 **Midorima has the ball in his hand. "I acknowledge your strength. However…" Midorima said. "You will not close the gap any further."**

" **What did you say?" Kagami growled. Midorima went for a three pointer. "No you don't!" Kagami said. He tried to jump to stop him but he couldn't. Without Kagami blocking him, Midorima was able to make the shot.**

" **He's out of gas?" Kise said.**

" **Probably" Kasamatsu said. "His body isn't strong enough to keep jumping like that. He must have overexerted himself jumping all over the place, not to mention..."**

Hyuga's eyebrows twitched. "And yet, somebody still acted like an arrogant bastard." He said with a scary smile. Kagami stiffened. "Sorry" he said. His tone was so meek that it was almost unlike him.

" **...he was subbed part way but it still is his second game of the day." Iwamura said. "He lost a lot of stamina from Tsugawara's mark."**

'Damn Tsugawara' Kagami thought.

" **Why is that idiot letting it get to him now!?" Tsugawa said in anger.**

"Shut up!" Kagami said despite Tsugawa not being there. Everyone else snorted.

 **Unfortunately, Kagami did not care and he rushed towards Shotoku's defense.**

' **It's not time yet, you idiot!' Hyuga snapped in his head. "Kagami, wait!"**

 **The ball was blocked by Midorima and went to Otsubo's hand. Otsubo passed it to Kimura who scored a basket. The screen showed Kuroko frowning. Clearly, he was annoyed with his partner's attitude.**

"Kuro-chin's mad" Murasakibara said as he stopped eating his snack. "I wouldn't be surprised if he punched Bakagami in the face." Aomine said.

 **The third quarter was over. At Seirin's bench, the seniors were telling Kagami off for pushing himself too far. But Kagami was being too stubborn to listen. He insisted that he was enough to win against Shutoku.**

Hyuga twitched. 'I swear if it weren't for Kuroko, I probably would have punched him.'

"And to think, you actually won the Winter Cup." Aomine said. "Any sane person could tell just by looking at your situation, just how bad your plan is." Kagami badly wanted to snap at him but he-grudgingly-knew that Aomine was right.

 **Kuroko having enough of Kagami's attitude, punched him straight into the face.**

"Damn" Those that were not in the game said in complete surprise. "That must have hurt." Susa said. 'It sure as as hell did' The GoM thought. They were all familiar with how strong Kuroko's arms are.

 **Everyone else was surprised by Kuroko's action. "Kuroko-kun!" Riko said in surprise.**

"Can you blame them?" Everyone said. "This is the first time, I've seen Kuro-chin punch someone." Murasakibara said. "He should do it more often" Aomine said with a laugh. "Especially if it's at Bakagami."

"Never in my life did I expect you of all people to punch someone, Kuroko." Hyuga said shaking his head. "Sorry." Kuroko said. "Don't apologize." Hyuga said. "Thanks to you, our resident baka finally managed to calm down." Kagami felt an arrow strike his back.

 **Kagami was clearly not happy about the punch as he grabbed Kuroko by his shirt. "You can't play basketball by yourself." Kuroko said.**

" **There is no point if we don't win!" Kagami yelled.**

" **There is point if you win by yourself." Kuroko said. Kagami's eyes widened. "You said you wanted to win against the Generation of Miracles, but you're thinking just like them."**

The GoM twitched a little. Even though it wasn't Kuroko's intention, they felt like Kuroko had slapped them rather than Kagami.

" **Even if we beat Shutoku as a team that can't trust each other, no one will be happy."**

" **Don't be naive!" Kagami said and he punched Kuroko in the face.**

Kise and Midorima twitched. Honestly, they had almost wanted to go to Seirin's bench and give Kagami a piece of their mind, but Kuroko doesn't like the idea of other's facing his battles so they stayed out of it.

" **Then what is victory?" Kuroko said on the floor, as Seirin stares at him. "No matter how many points you have at the end of the game, if you're not happy, that's not victory!"**

If the GoM did not feel the blow before, they definitely felt it now. Meanwhile everyone else was absorbing what Kuroko said. "I don't know why, but I feel like Tet-chan's been meaning to say that for a very long time.'

'That's because it's true.' Seirin, the GoM and Momoi thought.

 **Everyone in Seirin was quiet as they absorb what Kuroko said.**

" **That's right" Koganei said breaking the tension. "It's not like we want to lose."**

" **We're saying there is no reason for you to do it by yourself." Izuki said.**

" **Do you have any objections?" Hyuga asked Kagami.**

" **No...but...well…" Kagami said finally calming down. "Sorry. Of course I rather be happy when we win."**

" **Now that Kuroko has calmed Kagami down…" Hyuga said. "What do we do about this situation?" The score was 61-47, Shutoku with only 20 seconds remaining.**

" **Excuse me" Kuroko said standing up. "There may be one thing we can do. Up until now, I have only changed the direction of the ball. But I can take it a level higher."**

"Ah, the ignite pass." Takao said. "How did you even come up with the idea, Tet-chan?"

"It was thanks to Aomine-kun and Kise-kun." Kuroko said. "Huh?" Everyone expect the GoM said in confusion. The GoM just gave a really weary look.

 **The screen went blank.**

"That's the end of today's episode." Imayoshi said. Everyone said.

"How much longer till the end of this match?" Hayama said.

"We'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out." Mibuchi said.


	18. Chapter 18

Hi guys! Thank you so much for being so patient with me. Everyone is so sweet and nice! I hoped you like the last chapter and enjoy this one as well!

The next day, everyone found Riko waiting in front of the door patiently. "Coach, what are you up to?" Hyuuga asked. "I'm waiting for a special delivery." Riko said. "Special delivery!?" Everyone asked. "Hey Riko!" Kagetora Aida said with a big smile. "Eh? The coach's dad!?" Koganei said. "Why is he here?"

"I asked him to deliver something for us." Riko said. "Arf" Seirin heard something bark. Kagami twitched. 'It can't be…' he thought. Surely enough in Kagetora hand was Seirin's mascot, Nigou. "Nigou!" Kagami and Kuroko said. Kuroko was happy while Kagami was in despair. After Kagetora gave an exaggerated farewell to Riko. Kagami yelled "Why is he here!"

"Because, Seirin isn't Seirin without it's mascot." Riko said. "Do you have a problem?" Kagami was about to yell that he as sure as hell had a problem but then he noticed Kuroko and Nigou were staring at him with identical eyes and hesitantly said "No…"

"Then it's settled." Riko said with a smile. "From now on, Nigou will be joining us for the rest of this camp." Meanwhile the other school gathered around to see what was all the commotion about. Seirin introduced Nigou to the other teams. "He's so cute!" Mibuchi squealed spinning Nigou around.

"Your school mascot is a living breathing dog, Taiga?" Himuro asked Kagami. "But aren't you afraid of dogs, Taiga?" Kagami growled and muttered something like "had no choice".

"Why is he called Nigou?" Kobori asked. "His full name is Tetsuya Nigou." Kise said patting the dog. "Tetsuya Nigou?" Some people asked. "Look at him and Kuroko." Hyuga instructed. They did and soon the connection clicked. "The eyes! The eyes!" They exclaimed. "We know" Everyone else said.

"Alright everyone!" Riko said catching everyone's attention. "Let's eat breakfast so we can get into our daily routine." Everyone left to eat breakfast. After they were done with breakfast and training (which they finished with a lost of energy due to a certain cheerleader *Nigou*), everyone gathered to start watching the episodes.

Episode 13

 **The episode started like every other episode and continued from the end of the last episode. "Kuroko-kun new pass?" Riko said in surprise.**

" **Why haven't you said anything about it before?" Hyuga asked.**

" **Only a few people can catch it" Kuroko said.  
** "The GoM" Everyone said. "And Seirin" Takao added.

" **But in his current condition, Kagami-kun may be one of them."**

"What would happen if I wasn't in the condition to catch it?" Kagami asked. "Then we would've lost." Kuroko said bluntly.

" **However, just passing to Kagami-kun won't work until the end." Kuroko said. "We'll have to break free from Takao-kun and use normal passes as well."**

" **But maybe we can do that." Izuki said. "Besides my eyes are cramping up."**

"Huh?" Everyone that didn't know the trick said. 'Damn you, Izuki-san.' Takao thought.

" **What does that mean?" Koganei asked. Kuroko smiled realizing that Izuki has a plan.**

"Now that I think about it, Izuki-senpai and I have done a lot of collaboration together, didn't we?" Kuroko asked. "Yeah, it's because our playing styles are compatible." Izuki said. "Your observation skills really help me as a point guard."

" **Go for some shots in the last quarter." Hyuga said to Izuki.**

" **Got it" Izuki said.**

" **Senpai…" Kagami called out.**

" **Huh?' Hyuga said looking at Kagami.**

 **Kagami sheepishly scratched his head as he said. "Sorry about earlier."**

" **Huh? Oh, don't worry about it." Hyuga said with a smile.**

"Really?" Everyone said in confusion. "That's not the reaction I was expecting." Kiyoshi said.

 **Kagami smiled in relief but it was short-lived. " Although, that's what I would like to say." Hyuga added. Kagami stopped smiling.**

"There we go." Everyone said. "That's more like Hyuga" Kiyoshi agreed with a smile.

 **The screen showed Hyuga in a scary aura. "But the way you said that, I'll hit you later."**

Some people laughed while others sighed 'Why are senpais so scary?'

" **Hey, we're starting Hyuga." Izuki said with an exasperated expression.**

" **Well, it'll have to wait." Hyuga said. "Laugh or cry, we only got ten minutes. Let's go" The screen showed the faces of Seirin's starter side by side staring with determination along with Shutoku.**

 **The screen showed the episode title "I Believed in You."**

"Ahh" Seirin and Shutoku said. "We know what this means." They said said. "What?" everyone else asked. "You'll see." Seirin and Shutoku replied. The other school groaned.

" **Kurokocchi's playing" Kise said.**

' **What do they think they are doing?' Kasamatsu thought. 'As long as Takao is on the court, he is no trump card. Or do they have a plan?'**

"This last quarter was definitely interesting." Kasamatsu said.

 **The game started with Hyuga having the ball. The screen showed Kuroko running. Takao was closely marking him. 'Even if he plays, it'll be just like the first half.' Takao thought.**

 **Hyuga passed the ball to Kagami. Kagami ran to the basket and noticed Otsubo was getting ready to double team him with Midorima. Therefore, Kagami passed the ball to Izuki, shocking both Midorima and Otsubo, Izuki took the ball and scored a basket. "Yes!" Riko and Seirin cheered.**

' **He's not charging in by himself like before.' Otsubo thought as he took the ball.**

 **Midorima asked for the ball. 'Getting punched by Kuroko must have calmed his head.'**

'Thank goodness for Kuroko.' Seirin and some people thought.

' **However, you only have a little bit of stamina left.'**

 **Otsubo quickly passed the ball to Midorima. "They're quick to restart!" Koganei said.**

' **You can't stop my shot anymore.' Midorima thought.**

' **It's true I'm almost running on gas.' Kagami thought 'But…' The screen went back to Seirin during break time.**

" **Kagami-kun, how many times more can you jump?" Riko asked him.**

" **Jump?" Kagami asked**

" **You mean those super jumps that stops Midorima's shot." Hyuga said.**

" **They push your natural jumping power to the limit." Riko said. "On top of that, you're body isn't strong enough yet."**

" **I can still jump, any number of times!" Kagami said.**

"Baka, moments like this are meant to be thought rationally." Hyuga said.

" **You don't need to act tough now!" Riko told him. She used her ability to analyze Kagami. "Two's your limit."**

"Only two!" Everyone except Seirin said.

" **Two?" Izuki said.**

" **How are we supposed to stop Midorima with two?" Hyuga asked**

" **Keep one for the deciding moment of the game," Riko told him. "And use the other…"  
The screen went back to the game. Kagami did one of his super jumps. As he jumped, Riko voice was heard "to stop the first shot of the fourth quarter." Naturally, he was able to stop Midorima's shot. **

' **He can still jump?' Midorima thought. The ball went to Hyuga's hand, who passed to Izuki.**

 **Izuki took a shot. 'Go in' he thought. The ball went in. Seirin was now only 10 points behind Shutoku.**

" **Coach! Are you sure we should have used our first of two so early?" Furi asked.**

" **It's a bluff" Riko said.**

"A bluff!?" All the other schools exclaimed.

" **What?" the bench members said.**

" **Starting now, we can barely cover him normally." Riko said. "So we can't stop Midorima-kun if he shoots. However, Midorima-kun went take an impossible shots as long as we make him think Kagami-kun can still jump."**

"A very clever psychological mind trick." Akashi said. He was impressed with Seirin's coach being able to come up with a idea like that. "Ha! Midorima fell for a bluff" Aomine said with a laugh. "Dammit, I can't believe I was fooled." Midorima said. "Don't be hard on yourself, all of us fell for it as well." Otsubo said.

" **At the very least, I think we can reduce the number of shots he takes." Riko said. Everyone gasped in amazement.**

 **Riko leaned forward. 'So the rest is up to you, Kuroko-kun…'**

" **Looks like they are really counting on you." Takao said to Kuroko.**

"I didn't know Takao-kun was a psychic." Kuroko said. Everyone snorted while Takao gave Kuroko a blank look.

" **But no matter what you try, I will stop you. You can't escape my hawk eye." The screen changed to show the basketball court from Takao's hawkeye point of view.**

"Seriously though!" Takao said. "How are they able to show my hawk eye like this!?"

"It really is impressive." Kasamatsu said.

' **Without any blind spots, your misdirection won't work on him.' Hyuga thought. "What are you going to do, Kuroko?"**

" **Actually, it's probably not completely ineffective against him." Izuki told Hyuga.**

"Huh!?" Those that weren't in the game exclaimed.

" **What?"**

 **The screen showed the basketball court from a high angle shot. "Takao's hawk eye field of vision is so wide he can see the entire court." Izuki said. "That's why he can continue to watch Kuroko even if his attention is directed elsewhere. So..."**

"So what?" Some people said. "Ahh" the smart people in the group said. They had already figured out the answer.

 **The camera zoomed into Takao. "Huh?" Takao said. He turned to look at Kuroko.**

" **So instead directing attention away from himself," Izuki continued his explanation. "Kuroko used the opposite misdirection instead."**

"Opposite misdirection?" Everyone said with a confused expression. "You mean something like his misdirection overflow?" Wakamatsu asked. "Yes" Izuki and Kuroko nodded. "But how would that help him against Takao?" Moriyama asked. "Watch and see." Seirin said. Some people sighed in annoyance.

' **He's close.' Takao thought.**

 **The screen showed flashback of Kuroko passing and getting blocked by Takao. "The reason why he kept playing even after his passes were blocked was to make Takao focus on him." Izuki said. "First focus his vision, and then it can be directed somewhere else!" The screen showed Takao's field of view getting smaller.**

"Oh," Those that were confused said. They finally understood how Kuroko was able to pass Takao. "That was very clever of you, Izuki-san." Akashi said. "Um...Thanks…" Izuki said. He wasn't used to the idea of Akashi complementing people.

' **I lost sight of him? You're kidding!' Takao thought.**

Takao sighed.

 **Izuki had the ball. He passed the ball towards Kagami. 'Calm down' Takao thought 'Even if I can't find Kuroko, I still know Kagami's location. As long as I can jump in between the ball and Kagami…'**

" **You will not get it this time." Kuroko said.**

"I didn't know you were a psychic, Kuroko." Koganei said. Seirin sighed.

" **Up until now, I have only changed the direction of passes. This pass...increases the ball's speed!" Kuroko said as he punched the ball with his palm right into Kagami's hand.**

 **Everyone in Seirin was surprised by Kuroko's pass. 'He punched the ball!' Takao thought in shock. 'And catching that couldn't have been easy!'**

"I can catch it." The GoM said. 'Yeah but you guys are monsters.' Everyone else thought.

"It did kinda sting when I first caught it." Kagami said with a shrug. Seirin stares at Kagami in shock. "That pass doesn't just sting, it goddamn freaking hurts!" Seirin said. "Sorry" Kuroko said with a bow.

' **I can't believe this!'**

 **Kagami with the ball headed for the basket. Midorima was in front of the basket getting ready to stop him. As he headed for the net, Kagami thought about what Riko told him. 'You can jump only two more times. Keep one for the deciding moment of the game.'**

' **I know, but if we don't make something happen here…' Kagami thought as he got ready to jump.**

" **No you don't!" Midorima jumped to stop him.**

'… **when are we going to do it?' Kagami thought as he dunked the ball over Midorima.**

"Ha, he dunked over you, Midorima!" Aomine said with laughter. Midorima's eyebrow twitched. "I will have you know that I am not the only one who was dunked over." He said. "Or do I need to remind you of a certain match during the winter cup?" The made Aomine shut up.

 **Everyone in Shutoku was shocked by what happened. "He's done it now" Kise said. "He finally blew over Midorimacchi. Not only that...that was the pass only the Generation of Miracles could catch during middle school!"**

"How long did it take before you learned how to catch the ignite pass?" Takao asked Midorima. "Around 2 to 3 practices depending on how often Kuroko would send the pass to us." Midorima said. "Aomine and Akashi were the first to get used to the pass, after that me, Murasakibara and Kise were able to catch it."

" **Is he going to be alright running on fumes?"**

" **You could argue that wasn't a time to force a dunk." Kasamatsu said. "There is not much of a point for dunking."**

" **He loves to show off." Kise said.**

" **So do you." Kasamatsu told him.**

"Senpai so mean!" Kise said while everyone else laughed.

 **Kagami ran up to Kuroko. "Kuroko" Kagami said. Kuroko looked at him. "It sucks, but the coach is right. But I don't think I can jump anymore." Kagami said. "I'm going to have trick Midorima into thinking I can cover him."**

"That's a tall order for someone like Taiga." Himuro said. "What's that supposed to mean?" Kagami said. "You're not clever with tricks." Himuro said.

" **I don't really want to say this, but the rest is up to you."**

" **Okay." Kuroko said with a smile.**

 **The screen shifted from the court to Touou Gakuen.**

"That's our school." Wakamatsu said in surprise. "Wonder why they are showing our school?" Susa said. "Aomine-kun could it be…?" Momoi asked Aomine. "Probably…" Aomine said. "They have been showing everything till now."

 **Aomine was lying on the stage and rolling a basketball with the tip of his fingers. "Uhh, I'm tired." He said. "I don't want to move."**

"Lazy bum" Touou, GoM, Kuroko, Momoi, and Kagami simultaneously said with an eyeroll. "Shut up!" Aomine said. "Some of you don't even have right to call me lazy."

" **Maybe I'm getting old." Aomine continued. "I don't have any energy."**

"That would certainly explain your horrible grades." Midorima said with a nasty smile. "Only a senile old man can get your grades."

"What did you…?" Aomine said but Akashi said in a forceful tone. "Daiki, Shintarou, be quiet!"

Both of them calm down with Aomine grumbling and Midorima smirking. "It's unlike you to tease someone like that." Kuroko said to Midorima. "Consider it payback for all the time he insulted Oha-asa." Midorima said with a ominous glint in his glasses. Kuroko hummed. "So even Midorima-kun has an evil side to him." he said. Meanwhile, Touou and Kagami, along with few others were laughing.

" **I thought you'd be here." Momoi said.**

" **Huh?"**

" **Did you again fake being sick to skip another game?" Momoi said.**

"Daiki, how many practices have you been skipping?" Akashi asked. Momoi immediately answered him. "Every last practices and practice game before we lost to Seirin in the Winter Cup. Even after that, there are still a few practices he would skip."

"I see" Akashi said while Aomine gave Momoi a look that clearly said "you traitor." Momoi just smiled at him. "Imayoshi-san if you want, I can make a training schedule for Aomine to make up for all the practices he has skipped during this training camp." Akashi told him. "That would be lovely Akashi." Imayoshi said with a wide smile. 'I'm going to die.' Aomine despaired. Meanwhile some were laughing at Aomine's misfortune while others felt pity for him.

" **We'll win anyway." Aomine said. "It's too much work."**

" **Sheesh," Momoi said. "Anyway it's sound like Tetsu-kun and Midorin are playing against each other right now!"**

'Well that explains why they are showing this.' Everyone thought.

" **Maybe Tetsu-kun will win." Momoi said eating ice-cream. "After all, he's the man I fell in love with."**

"Thank you, Momoi-san." Kuroko said. 'Why am I not surprised by her answer?' The GoM, Seirin and Touou thought. "Wait, what!?" Those that didn't know about Momoi crush said. "She has a crush on Kuroko." Seirin, Touou and GoM said. 'How did he get someone hot like Momoi to fall in love with him!?'

" **We'll see" Aomine said. "You never know until the game is over."**

" **What?" Momoi said**

" **They're both strong players." Aomine said. "They took the middle school championship title three years in a row."**

"Maybe Aomine really wasn't feeling well that day." Midorima said. "Probably, I mean he is saying something nice." Kuroko said. "Oi!" Aomine said. "You're supposed to be my best friend, Tetsu." Kuroko shrugged his shoulder.

 **Izuki had the ball. He passed the ball to Kuroko who passed it to Mitobe.**

' **When did he get there?' Takao thought. 'I don't know what is going on anymore.'**

 **Mitobe took the ball and scored a basket. The score was now 78-76 with Shutoku in the lead. At that moment, Shutoku asked for a time out. "I didn't think…" Midorima said as he catched his breath. "I didn't think you would catch up this much."**

" **Midorima-kun, you once said dunks are shots that can only score two points." Kuroko said not looking at Midorima. "You're threes are certainly impressive." Kuroko turned to look at Midorima. "But I think inspiring dunks, like the one he just made, are worth more than the points they score."**

"He does have a point." Kasamatsu said. "The value of shot to a team is certainly more important than the amount of points they score."

"I still think my three pointers are impressive." Midorima said not admitting defeat. 'What a stubborn guy!' Everyone else thought. "And they say I am stubborn." Kuroko said not even bothering to hide his thoughts.

" **That's the last time out." Iwamura said. "Seirin's got control of the game now."**

" **Will Shutoku break away or will Seirin overtake them?" Kasamatsu said. "It's a deciding timeout."**

" **We've got two minutes, so we'll put everything to Midorima." Nakatani said.**

" **But Kagami can still jump." Kimura said.**

" **No, he can't" Nakatani said**

"Leave it to coach to figure out the truth." Takao said.

" **That was just their coach covering the truth. Their No.10 is completely out of gas. Crush them with the threes."**

"Isn't leaving the offense to only one person considered a not-so-intelligent strategy? Kise said. "We lost the match, didn't we?" Shutoku said in an annoyed expression. "Plus, it's not like we're the only team that decided to use that strategy in a match." Takao said. Said team gave a weary laugh.

" **Coach, Otsubo-san and the others can't be very pleased with letting the first years handle this." One of Shutoku's bench member said.**

" **I know." Nakatani said. "But our next three years will focus around Midorima. That's what it means to acquire one of the Generation of Miracles."**

"Coach shouldn't say stuff like that." Takao said. "Because stuff like that is going to give Shin-chan an unnecessary big head."

"Oi!" Midorima said.

"I don't see what's the problem." Kagami said. "I mean they all had unnecessary big heads when I met them. Adding a little more won't really change anything." The GoM glared at Kagami.

 **The game started. Miyaji had the ball. He passed it to Midorima. "It's Midorima." Someone said. "This is bad! Kagami is out of gas!"**

" **I thought they might try that." Riko said with a smirk. The ball was pushed away from Midorima by Kuroko. Midorima's eyes widened in shock. "Once Kagami-kun's trick is revealed, their passes would focus on Midorima-kun. It's like they are telling us their pass course."**

"Not bad" Wakamatsu whistled. For someone in his age to outwit an experienced coach is pretty impressive. 

**The ball went to Hyuga's hand. Otsubo went after him. 'I know that raw talent is all that matters.' He thought. 'But I can't say I'm happy relying on first years. We have our pride. But more than that, the regulars represents the guys whose hard work didn't even get them the bench.'**

All the second and third years nodded their heads in agreement.

 **Hyuga went for the shot but Otsubo blocked him.**

' **Putting Midorima on offense means putting the other four on defense.' Nakatani thought.**

 **It started to rain outside. "This is kind of creepy." Kise said. "I thought the game would get more intense now."**

" **Since Shutoku's pace has slowed down, the score's been frozen in place." Kasamatsu said.**

 **The score finally moved with Midorima scoring a three pointer. Next Izuki had the ball, who passed it to Hyuga who scored a three point of his own with only 18 seconds remaining.**

Everyone moved in since this was the deciding point of the game.

 **Kuroko pushed the ball away from Takao. Izuki went to get the ball but Takao pushed it away. The ball went out of bounds. Otsubo was marking Hyuga since they knew Seirin needs a three pointer to win this match. "I acknowledge your skill." Otsubo told him. "That's why I'll do everything I can to stop you."**

" **I don't want to owe you anymore" Hyuga said. "You gave me quite the passionate block a while ago."**

' **Last year, we faced reality when they tripled our score.' Hyuga thought. 'But because of my love for basketball, I made it this far.'**

 **Kagami acted as a screen for Hyuga to dodge his mark. 'A screen!' Otsubo thought. 'But it's weak. I can still catch up.' But then Otsubo noticed how far Hyuga was heading. 'He's going to shoot from there?'**

"That was pretty risky of you, Hyuga." Izuki said. "You aren't Midorima after all." Hyuga huffed. "Did you forget that I don't miss any shots that are critical?"

 **With 6 seconds, Izuki passed the ball to Hyuga who smoothly scored a three pointer.**

"Well done." Kiyoshi said. "And that is how Seirin wins this match?" Fukai said. "Not quite." Seirin said.

" **I don't believe it." Someone in the audience said. "With only 3 seconds left, Seirin won!"**

" **Did we really win?" Kagami said not quite believing it.**

" **You still haven't won yet" Takao said passing the ball to Midorima. There was lightning outside the courts.**

" **Let me tell you why I am so determined to shoot so far way." Midorima said. "It's not just because my shots are three points. It's not unusual for comebacks to happen in the last second of a close game. Sometimes it happens due to chance. I can't afford to let that happen, that is why I end games with a buzzer beater."**

"That's actually a good reason." Akashi said. "So it's not just because of the points, even though Midorimacchi insisted so much that it was?" Kise said with a confused expression.

 **More lightning was happening outside. "Not good!" Riko said. "He caught everyone by surprise and Kagami can't jump anymore."**

 **Midorima went for the shot. 'We were going to win!' Kagami thought. 'Move legs!' Kagami went for the jump.**

"He jumped!" Those that weren't in the game said. "I thought he was at his limits!" Wakamatsu said.

' **Impossible, he should at his limits!' Takao thought. Everyone in Shutoku was surprised by Kagami's jump...except for Midorima who went for a fake.**

"That's pretty impressive" Imayoshi said.

" **I believed in you." Midorima said.**

"The title of the episode." Everyone said.

" **That you would jump." Midorima went for his shot again with one second remaining.**

' **What kind of heart does he have!?' Hyuga thought. 'Who does a fake at a last second like this!?'**

 **The screen went to black. "I believed him as well." Kuroko's voice could be heard. "That Kagami-kun could jump." Lightning flashed the sky as Kuroko slapped the ball away from Midorima's hand simultaneously.**

' **Kuroko!' Midorima thought.**

" **And I also believed that Midorima-kun would as well and would lower the ball once more." Kuroko said. With that, the game was officially over.**

Everyone released a breath that they didn't know that they were holding. "That was one epic moment" Hayama said. "My heart was pumping!" Everyone nodded in agreement.

"The lightning definitely made that moment more intense than I remembered" Takao said.

"Tetsuya, was that…?" Akashi asked. "Probably" Kuroko said. "But at the time I passed it off as luck."

 **Seirin cheered for their victory as everyone in audience looked on as if they couldn't believe what happened.**

"That's because we couldn't." Kise said. "That was a really good game." Okamura said to Shutoku and Seirin. "Well done!" Seirin and Shutoku thanked him.

 **The members in Seirin's bench snapped out of their trance and joined the celebration. "We really won this time!" Tsuchida said. Meanwhile the freshmen trio simultaneously cheered "We won, we won, we won!"**

 **The screen all the Seirin members reaction to their victory as Riko watched on with tears. Meanwhile, Shutoku was coming in terms with their loss. "Let's go line up." Takao told Midorima. "Even Oha-asa gotta be wrong sometimes."**

"Only when it comes to Kuroko." Midorima muttered under his breath.

" **Shut up" Midorima told him. Takao shrugged. The two teams bowed.**

 **The screen changed to the outside. "I guess the rain isn't going to stop today." Kasamatsu said.**

' **The championship ship game is next.' Kise thought 'Which means it won't be long before they play Aominecchi.'**

 **The screen showed Midorima standing outside in the rain. His phone started to ring. At first, it looked as if Midorima was not going to pick up, but he did. "Yes" He said.**

" **Ah, Midorin, it's great talking to you again!" Momoi's loud and cheerful voice greeted him.** **"How was the game?" She asked "Did you win or lose? Which one? Tell me!"**

 **Instead of answering, Midorima hanged up on her.**

Everyone except Midorima and Momoi laughed. Momoi huffed while Midorima sighed.

 **His phone rang again. Thinking it was Momoi, Midorima said. "What's wrong with you? Enough…" But it wasn't Momoi's voiced that greeted Midorima.**

" **You sound grouchy" Aomine said. "You lost, didn't you?"**

" **Aomine" Midorima said. "I did. You should be careful."**

" **What? What are you saying?" Aomine said. The screen showed Momoi was pouting.**

"Momochi, why did you call Midorimacchi?" Kise asked. "You should've called Kurokocchi, he would've been polite to you unlike Midorimacchi."

"Dai-chan told me to call Midorin" Momoi said with a huff.

" **The only one who can beat me is me." Aomine said with a confident smirk.**

Kagami sighed. "It's bad enough that I had to suffer an entire year of that Ahomine's insufferable attitude." he said. "Now I have to watch it?"

"Look on the bright side Kagamicchi." Kise said. "Touou had to suffer even more compare to us."

"True." Kagami said. This caused Touou to sigh and Aomine to glare at Kise and Kagami,

 **The screen went blank.**

 **The screen changed to show a picture of Midorima and Kuroko. Kuroko was holding up a shirt against Midorima while he was standing behind Midorima. Midorima was holding another shirt while he looked at Kuroko with a questioning glance.**

"No fair" Kise said. "I want to go shopping with Kurokocchi as well!"

"You and Midorima went shopping?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "We ran into one another at the mall." Kuroko said. "Midorima said that he was looking for a specific kind of shirt for his lucky item and I decided to help him."

"By the way, this episode is over." Miyaji said.

Done! I'm sorry for the delay. It's just that I lost my maternal grandfather a couple of weeks ago, so I had some matters I need to take of with my family. Again, I'm sorry. Hopefully, you enjoyed the episode.


	19. Chapter 19

Hi Guys! Sorry for the delay! Here is the next chapter. Enjoy!

Episode 14:

 **The episode started with a new opening*.**

"Oh look, a new opening." Hayama said with excitement.

 **The opening opened up with zooming up on Kuroko's eye followed by a basketball. The same thing happened with Kagami. Then it showed Kise in a yellow background followed by him doing a basketball move.**

"I look so cool." Kise said. Kasamatsu hit him on the head. "This opening more into metal." Takao said.

 **It showed Midorima in a green background performing a three pointer.**

Midorima smiled.

 **Aomine in a navy blue background followed by a move of his own.**

Aomine shrugged. He knew he would look awesome.

 **Then the screen showed Kuroko, Kagami and the Generation of Miracles one at a time.**

"Look Muro-chin, it's me." Murasakibara said with a hint of excitement. "I can see that Atsushi." Himuro said with a smile.

"Oh look, it's Sei-chan." Mibuchi with excitement. "I wasn't expecting my appearance in an opening to be so soon." Akashi said. 'But than again, this is based on Tetsuya so I shouldn't be surprised.'

 **The screen showed Kuroko and Kagami running side by side at a beach.**

"Training camp." Kuroko and Kagami said.

 **The screen changed to show Riko trying to do a trick with her hand but she lost balance and the ball ended up hitting Nigou.**

"Poor Nigou." Almost everyone said sympathetically.

 **Riko bend down to apologize to him while Nigou gave an exasperated sigh.**

Everyone laughed. "Tetsu's dog got just as much spunk as Tetsu." Aomine said with a laugh. Everyone agreed while Kuroko smiled fondly.

 **The screen showed Kise and Kasamatsu doing a high-five.**

"I always knew that despite how much Kasamatsu would deny it, him and Kise got along well." Kobori said. "I do not!" Kasamatsu yelled. "So mean, Senpai." Kise said. Meanwhile the rest of Kaijou agreed with Kobori's statement.

 **It changed to show Midorima and Takao.**

"No surprise." Everyone said. "What's that supposed to mean?" Takao and Midorima said.

I **t changed to Aomine dribbling a basketball and then to Momoi in a colorful background.**

"Oh look!" Momoi said. "I appeared in an opening."

"With that, everyone from Teikou has made an appearance in an opening." Imayoshi said.

 **It showed glimpse of Seirin vs Touou and then it showed Kagami looking frustrated while Kuroko looked depressed.**

Seirin grimaced as they remembered their loss to Touou.

 **It showed the rest of the Seirin team with Kiyoshi.**

"Looks like I made by appearance in an opening as well." Kiyoshi said.

 **Kagami and Kuroko did a fist bump.**

"Are they always going to show us doing a fist bump?" Kagami asked. "It is pretty significant with your bond with Kuroko." Hyuga said. "It's still annoying." Aomine muttered underneath his breath.

 **A member of Touou moved out of the way to reveal Kuroko standing still and then doing a cyclone pass the next second.**

"Nice." Everyone said.

 **The screen changed to Kagami, Kise, Midorima and Aomine making shots at basket and the ball going in.**

 **The screen changed to show the members of Kaijou's basketball team, Imayoshi, Sakurai and Wakamatsu.**

"And here I was thinking that I wouldn't be appearing any opening." Kasamatsu said. Moriyama, Kobori, Imayoshi, Wakamatsu and Sakurai agreed with him. "Wait a minute!" Susa said. "I wasn't in the opening!"

"Oh yeah!" Wakamatsu said. "Looks like Susa-senpai is the only one left."

 **It** **also showed Aomine, Murasakibara and the other Akashi.**

"I appeared again." Murasakibara said with a hint of happiness.

'Oh look, it's you.' Akashi said to his other self in his head. His other self said nothing.

 **Lastly, Kuroko and Kagami are getting ready to enter the court. The screen changed to the title and all of Seirin's regular standing side by side.**

"That's it for this opening." Kuroko said. "I wonder who sang this opening?" Izuki asked. 'Better not be me.' Himuro thought.

 **The** **episode started of with Midorima talking to Aomine in the phone. "You haven't changed a bit, Aomine." Midorima said. "You are going against Kuroko in the championship league."**

 **"You seem confused Midorima." Aomine said. "The past is irrelevant. We are enemies now."**

"You sure this guy was your best friend in middle school, Kuroko?" Kagami said pointing at Aomine. "I mean he did just dismiss your friendship like it was nothing."

"Oi!" Aomine said. "I always thought of Aomine-kun as my best friend." Kuroko said. "But I guess Aomine-kun thought differently."

"What the hell are you talking about!?" Aomine said. "Of course you're my best friend!"

"He is?" Everyone in Touou said. "What's that supposed to mean?" Aomine asked in annoyance. They shrugged. "You did behave like a jerk towards him." Wakamatsu said. Aomine sighed as he realized that they will most likely make fun of him every single time he acted like a jerk.

 **Midorima said nothing. "I'm hanging up." Aomine said.**

 **"Sure." Midorima said.**

 **Momoi grabbed the phone from Aomine's hand and yelled into the phone. "Midorin! Sorry to bother you while you are sad!" A tick appeared on Midorima's head. "Cheer up!"**

 **"Shut up!" Aomine told her as Midorima hang up the phone himself.**

"Momoicchi has been spending too much time with Aominecchi and Kurokocchi" Kise said as everyone laughed. "Why do you say that, Ki-chan?" Momoi asked. "Because you were blunt as Kurokocchi and inconsiderate as Aominecchi." Kise said. Aomine hit Kise on the head with the nearest object while everyone else laughed some more. Kuroko stayed indifferent.

 **Midorima closed his flip phone.**

"By the way Midorimacchi, I've been meaning to ask but why are you still using a flip phone at this day and age?" Kise asked. "I can use whatever phone I want!" Midorima said with a red face.

 **The screen showed the title of the episode "You are just like him"**

"Let me guess, Aomine and Kagami?" Imayoshi asked. "Yep" Seirin said. "I still don't see it." Aomine and Kagami said simultaneously.

 **Riko came into the Seirin locker room. "Let's go home." She said.**

 **"No...wait...stop...seriously, wait." Hyuga said in a weak voice. Him, Izuki, Mitobe and Koganei looked as if they would collapse any moment. "We just played two games against kings."**

"No surprise you're body is like that considering the matches you played" Kasamatsu said.

" **Oh sorry." Riko said. 'They look like zombies.' She thought.**

Everyone laughed while Seirin regulars huffed.

 **"We will be fine after a few minutes but Kagami…" Hyuga said. Kagami's body was trembling even though he was simply sitting down. "He pushed himself too hard."**

 **"I can barely stand. Let alone move." Kagami said.**

"Well he did jump more than his limit allowed him." Miyaji said.

 **"But we can't stay here forever." Riko said. "Let's go to the nearest restaurant." The screen changed to the outside of the locker room to show the other Seirin members were waiting. "Someone carry Kagami-kun."**

 **"Let's decide by rock, paper, scissors." Hyuga said. Everyone in the locker room except joined in the match.**

"You guys are looking pretty reluctant." Mibuchi observed. "Can you blame us?" Koganei said. "We were tired and now we were being forced to Kagami, who is not a light baggage."

"Kuroko will end up carrying Kagami." Midorima said. "Why do you say that?" Takao asked. "Cause Tetsu sucks at rock, paper, scissors." Aomine said.

 **Surely enough, Kuroko lost and was forced to carry Kagami.**

"Told you." Midorima said.

 **The screen changed to the restaurant.**

"Oh" Kise said. "What?" Everyone who didn't know about this asked. "You'll see." Kise said.

 **"Excuse me." Riko said coming to the restaurant.**

 **"Welcome." The owner said. "There is a lot of people in your group."**

 **The screen changed to Kuroko and Kagami who was muddy for some reason. "Kuroko, you'll pay for this." Kagami said.**

 **"I'm sorry, you were too heavy." Kuroko said in blank tone.**

"What?" Everyone asked. "Kagami-kun was too heavy for me to carry so I had to drop him." Kuroko said. "Coincidently, the area I dropped him was muddy." There was a moment of silence and then everyone burst out into laughter. "And you told me you fell." Kise said with a laugh. "Shut up!" Kagami said.

 **While Riko was ordering seats, Kagami noticed a couple of familiar people. It was Kise and Kasamatsu.**

"We concidently ended up eating at the same place as them." Kasamatsu said.

 **"Kise and Kasamatsu!" Kagami said.**

 **"Hey, no honorifics!" Kasamatsu said as Kise said "Hey"**

 **Due to the lack of seats, Kuroko and Kagami ended up sharing a table with Kise and Kasamatsu.**

"That must have been awkward." Moriyama said. "It was." Kise said.

 **Kasamatsu and Kuroko were fine with the situation while Kise and Kagami looked a little awkward at the situation.**

 **"Why are we sitting together?" Kise asked. "And why are you covered in mud, Kagamicchi?"**

"Ah!" Kise said. "I got so caught up at the moment, I didn't even realize I was sitting next to Kurokocchi the entire time!" Everyone sighed.

 **"I fell. Forget about it" Kagami said.**

Everyone snorted.

 **"And don't call me Kagamicchi"**

 **"If we don't eat, it'll burn." Kasamatsu casually said. He was eating his own food throughout the conversation.**

 **"Oh, right." Kise said.**

 **At that moment, Takao and Midorima walked into the restaurant.**

"Awkward." Everyone that were not at the restaurant said.

 **Takao was about to ask for two seats when he noticed Seirin was also at the restaurant. Seirin, Kise and Kasamatsu were surprised to them. There was a moment of awkward silence. Hyuga broke the silence by asking "What are you doing here? Where are the others?"**

 **Takao- being the friendly guy- said "We lost the upperclassmen while Shin-chan was crying."**

 **"Oi" Midorima said.**

"This wouldn't have happened, if he wasn't so prideful and just cried in front of us." Miyaji sighed. Everyone laughed while Midorima huffed. "I was not crying." Midorima said. No one believed him.

 **"We figured we might as well get something to eat." Takao said.**

 **"We are going somewhere else." Midorima said. The two of them left only to come back drenched. It seems the rain was very heavy outside.**

Everyone snorted.

 **Neither of them were very happy. "Huh?" Takao said noticing Kasamatsu. "Are you Kaijou's Kasamatsu-san?"**

"Somebody's famous." Moriyama said. "Shut up!" Kasamatsu said with a red face.

 **"How did you know?" Kasamatsu asked.**

 **"I saw you Basketball Monthly." Takao said. "You're a nationally famous point-guard. As someone you plays the same position, I would love to hear your stories. Let's talk over there." And with that Takao took Kasamatsu away from his seat.**

"Takao-kun is quite pushy." Kuroko said. Everyone agreed while Takao shrugged.

 **Having nowhere else to seat, Midorima took Kasamatsu's spot. This means that...Midorima, Kagami, Kise and Kuroko...were sitting in the same table!**

"THAT TABLE IS ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS!" Everyone that was not at the restaurant shouted. "Yep." Everyone that was at the restaurant said.

 **"That table is ridiculous!" Hyuuga shouted.**

Everyone snorted.

 **"Wait a minute, this could get interesting!" Riko said with excitement.**

Seirin sighed at Riko's behaviour.

 **"You wanted this to happen, didn't you?" Kasamatsu asked Takao.**

 **"What? Of course not." Takao said with a mischief smile.**

Everyone gave Takao a blank look.

 **There was an awkward silence at "The Table" which Kuroko broke by asking. "Why don't we order something? I'm hungry."**

 **"I'm pretty much full so I'm fine with what we have." Kise said.**

 **"You just love food that looks like vomit." Midorima said to Kise.**

 **Kise was offended. "Why would you say that?" Kise told Midorima.**

Everyone laughed.

 **While Kise and Midorima were talking Kagami was ordering his food.**

"What the hell are you ordering?" Almost everyone asked Kagami.

 **Finally having enough of Kagami's large menu, Midorima yelled. "You're ordering too much."**

 **Kise simultaneously yelled. "What sort of incantation is that?"**

Everyone laughed out loud. "Incantation…" Mibuchi said while laughing. "Oh God! That's hilarious."

 **"It's alright." Kuroko said reassuring his former teammates. "Kagami-kun can eat it all by himself."**

 **"Is he really human?" Kise asked in disbelief.**

Everyone snorted while Kagami huffed.

 **Shortly after, the food was served and Midorima looked annoyed as ever. "I know losing sucks, but come on!" Kise said trying to pacify Midorima. "Yesterday's enemies are today's friends."**

"Aren't you the optimistic one?" Midorima said.

"Considering the fact that the megane just lost his match, you're asking for a tall order Kise." Aomine said.

 **"I just lost to him!" Midorima said. "If anything, I can't believe you have no problem sitting with them."**

 **Kise smiled. "Well it' because I'll get my revenge at the Inter-High, of course."**

 **Kuroko and Kagami stopped eating and looked at Kise. "I won't lose next time."**

 **Kagami swallowed his food and said "Bring it on."**

 **Midorima looked at Kise. "Kise, you've changed a little." he said.**

 **"Really?" Kise asked.**

 **"You're eyes...They're strange." Midorima said.**

 **"Strange?" Kise said in surprise.**

"Why can't you just be nice for once?" Kise wailed at Midorima while everyone else laughed.

 **Meanwhile, the other tables were busy making their own food. "Maybe it's because I've been practicing more since we played against Kurokocchi." Kise said. "And lately I've been thinking, it's pretty fun playing basketball with everyone in Kaijou."**

"Thanks, but you're still annoying." Kise's teammate told him. "So mean!" Kise wailed. Meanwhile, Midorima glared at Takao when he asked Kasamatsu-san to let him cook for him.

" **It seems I'm mistaken." Midorima said taking a bite out of his food. "You haven't changed, you just reverted back to a state before we won our championships."**

Kise gave Midorima a look that said 'I'm not the only one.' Midorima huffed.

 **Kise just smiled. "But" Kuroko said. "We were all like that back then."**

"Honestly, I still have a hard time believing there was a time when the Generation of Miracles were innocent" Kagami said. He put air quotes around the word innocent.

The Generation of Miracles huffed while their teammates somewhat agreed with Kagami.

 **"How you change is up to you." Midorima said. "However, I am not playing basketball for fun."**

Midorima's teammates gave him a "I don't believe you look".

 **"You guy think too much." Kagami said.**

"Considering the fact that you don't think at all, of course you would think we think too much." Midorima told Kagami. "What!?" Kagami yelled. "He's right." Kuroko said. "I can't believe you of all people, are agreeing with Midorima." Kagami told Kuroko. Kuroko shrugged. "Because he is right."

 **"Of course we play basketball because it is fun."**

 **"How dare you speak like you understand when you know nothing-" Midorima said.**

"I do now." Kagami muttered underneath his breath.

 **Before Midorima could say anything, a okonomiyaki landed on top of his head.**

Midorima glared at Takao who left his seat to seat next to Kaijou while everyone else laughed. Kise and Kagami were especially laughing harder than the rest.

 **Takao blinked twice since he couldn't believe what happened. Midorima was obviously infuriated.**

 **"We can talk about this later." Midorima said calmly as he got up from his seat. "Takao, come here."**

 **Takao apologized but it was futile. Although the camera didn't show what happened, judging by the way Kagami and Kise twitched, it must have been scary.**

 **The screen changed to Midorima dragging Takao out of the restaurant. As soon as the door closed, there was a sound that sounded like a slap and Takao yelled out in pain.**

Everyone stared on with a blank look. "May the lord have mercy on his soul." Kuroko said. "I'm right here." Takao said. This caused everyone to laugh.

 **Everyone else at the restaurant stared on with a blank look. Kuroko was the first one to look away.**

"How do you not get fazed by all that?" Himuro asked Kuroko. "Simple." Kuroko said. "You make sure you are friends with people like the Generation of Miracles for 3 years." The Generation of Miracles looked at Kuroko in shock while everyone else laughed to the point of tears.

 **"Kagami-kun is right." Kuroko said. "That's what I realized during today's game. If it were boring, we wouldn't have gotten this good."**

 **The door opened as Midorima walked back into the restaurant. "Kagami, let me tell you something." he said. Kagami looked at him. "There are two Kiseki no Sedai in Tokyo. Myself and Aomine Daiki. You will face him in the championship league. He is the same type of player as you."**

"I am nothing like him." Aomine and Kagami said pointing to one another.

 **"What? I don't really get it." Kagami said.**

"No surprise." Seirin said.

 **"But he's strong, right?" Kagami asked.**

"He's also a major pain." Kagami said. "Ha!" Aomine said. "Have you looked into the mirror yet?"

"WHY YOU…!" Kagami said. He and Aomine started to argue. After a while, Kuroko jabbed Kagami at the gut while Momoi hit Aomine with a clipboard.

 **"He is strong." Kuroko said. "But I don't like the way he plays."**

Aomine sighed. 'Something tells me I'm not going to like the next few episodes.' He thought.

 **Midorima paid for his food and was leaving the restaurant. "Midorima-kun." Kuroko called out to him. "Let's play again sometimes."**

 **"Of course we will." Midorima said not looking at Kuroko. "I will win next time."**

"I bet you were really happy when Tet-chan said that." Takao teased Midorima. "What the hell are you saying?" Midorima said. "Of course I wasn't." Actually, Midorima was happy. Despite how rude he was to Kuroko for his school decision, Kuroko was still willing to be his friend.

Of course, he didn't realize just how great of an extent Kuroko had forgiven him until he lost against Akashi. His team had given everything they could to win but at the end they were completely destroyed. It was absolutely devastating. It was during this time, that he realized that he did something very similar back in middle school. For Midorima, the fact that Kuroko had forgiven them is a miracle. Midorima's eyes widened as he realized something. 'Shoot! I didn't even apologize.'

Midorima was in a dilemma. How do you apologize to someone you don't get along with?

 **Takao was waiting outside for him with the rear car. "We don't have to play rock, paper, scissors today." he said. Midorima looked at him with surprise but then he smiled.**

"Midorimacchi smiled!" Kise said. " And it wasn't evil at all!" He got hit in the head by an apple courtesy of Midorima while everyone else tried to hide their laughter.

 **"But in exchange, your lucky item…"**

 **"Yes, I will not fail next time." Midorima said. "I will purchase an even larger Shiragaki."**

 **"Size is not the issue!" Takao said.**

Shutoku and the GoM sighed.

 **After the rain stopped, the Seirin team left the restaurant. "Alright! On to the championship league." Hyuga said.**

 **"Yeah!" Everyone cheered.**

 **"Huh?" Hyuga said looking around. "Where is Kuroko?"**

 **"Excuse me." Kuroko said.**

 **"Huh? Where did you…?" Hyuga was about to ask but Kuroko interrupted him.**

 **"I found this...dog." Kuroko said. The screen changed to show Nigou.**

"It's Nigou!" Momoi squealed. "So that's how you got your dog." Aomine said. "Typical."

"So Nigou was an abandoned dog?" Kise asked. "What kind of a human being would abandon such an adorable puppy?" Most of the people agreed with Kise.

"Maybe we should bring Nigou to watch with us." Kuroko said. "Sure" Seirin said while Kagami said "No"

Kuroko left to get Nigou. As soon as Nigou joined Seirin's bench, Kagami left to join Himuro. "Don't laugh." He told Himuro. "I'm not laughing." Himuro said even though he clearly was laughing.

 **"A dog?" Everyone in Seirin said in surprise.**

 **"Don't take him with you!" Hyuga said.**

 **"That's terrible." Izuki said.**

 **"What are we going to do with it?" Koganei asked.**

"Adopt him and make him our mascot." Seirin said.

 **Meanwhile Riko came out of the restaurant. "You guys are disturbing the neighbours." She said. She stopped walking when she noticed Nigou on top of Kuroko's head.**

"Arf" Nigou said when he noticed himself. "Shh" Kuroko told him.

 **There were flowers on the screen and the next moment, Riko was twirling Nigou around saying "He's so fluffy! He's so cute! Where did you come from?" You are so cute."**

 **"Coach, calm down." Hyuga said blankly. Meanwhile, Kuroko watched on with a blank look.**

Seirin sighed while everyone else laughed.

 **Riko stopped spinning to look at Nigou. "Doesn't he look like someone?" Seirin stared at Nigou, then at Kuroko. They kept on going until the connection clicked.**

 **Seirin screamed. "The eyes! The eyes!" Someone yelled.**

Everyone else howled with laughter. Seirin shrugged. What were the chances of finding a dog that looks like your teammate?

 **"Shoot! He's already became attached." Hyuga said.**

 **"Okay! You're name will be Tetsuya Nigou!" Koganei said.**

 **"Don't name him!" Hyuga said. "It will be harder to leave him."**

"You were against adopting him?" Kasamatsu asked Hyuga.

"I didn't find my team capable of taking care of a dog and focusing on practice." Hyuga shrugged.

 **"I can't believe people still abandon their dogs." Izuki said patting Nigou.**

Almost everyone agreed with Izuki.

 **"Hey, I've been wondering…" Riko said calling out to Seirin. She and Kuroko were looking at something. It was Kagami. He was cowering behind a sign.**

 **"What are you doing, Kagami-kun?" Riko asked.**

 **Kagami looked at them nervously. "Well…" he said. "I really can't handle dogs."**

"What?" Everyone that didn't know Kagami's phobia said. "Kagami-kun is afraid of dogs." Kuroko said. After a moment of silence, some people laughed out loud while others had an amused expression on their faces.

"Bakagami is afraid of dogs!" Aomine said with laughter. "I thought he didn't like them but he's actually afraid of dogs."

"Shut up!" Kagami said. "I bet you have an embarrassing phobia as well."

"I do not." Aomine quickly denied. "Aomine-kun is afraid of bees." Kuroko said.

"Seriously." Kagami and Touou said with an amused expression while Aomine looked at Kuroko with an aghast expression.

"Are you guys afraid of anything?" Yosen, Kaijo, Shutoku and Rakuzan asked their miracle member.

"No." They quickly denied. "Kise-kun is afraid of worms. Midorima-kun is afraid of cats, Murasakibara-kun is afraid of crows and Akashi-kun hates disobedient dogs." Kuroko said. The GoM looked at Kuroko with a horrid expression while their teammates had a very amused expression on their face.

 **Kagami's teammates stared at him with a blank expression.**

 **The screen changed to Seirin's gym. "Having secured our position in the championship league," Riko's voice narrated. "We overcame our difficult practice tests and resumed practice. However..."**

 **"Dammit, I'm itching to play." Kagami said.**

 **"You have to wait until your legs healed." Riko told him.**

 **Kuroko did a pass. "Nice pass." Koganei said.**

"Arf." Nigou said.

 **"Arf." Nigou said causing Kagami to twitch.**

 **Hyuga did a shot. "Nice shot." Izuki said.**

"Arf." Nigou said.

 **"Arf." Nigou said.**

"Looks like No. 2 knows how to play basketball." Miyaji said with a laugh. "What a smart dog."

"Typical of Tetsu's dog." Aomine said.

 **"Number 2, you know how to play basketball?" Hyuga asked him.**

 **"Arf." Nigou said.**

 **"You are quite the talker." Koganei said. Nigou walked into the gym. As soon as Nigou entered the gym, Kagami immediately left for the door.**

 **"Huh?" Riko said looking at Kagami. "You really don't like them?"**

 **"Yes." Kagami said with a shaky voice.**

The other teams tried to hide their amusement at Kagami's predicament.

 **Riko shrugged.**

 **"Kagami-kun." Kuroko said. Kagami turned to look at Kuroko. Kuroko was holding Nigou in his hand and was giving him the same sad expression as Nigou. "Don't say that."**

"So cute!" Momoi squealed. Meanwhile Kise looked at his former teammates. "You think Kagamicchi will be able to resist?" His former teammates' expression gave the same answer. 'Hell no!' Kuroko's puppy dog eyes were hard enough to resist as is, add a puppy into the mix and it's downright impossible.

 **"Don't look at me with those pair of identical eyes!" Kagami yelled at Kuroko.**

Everyone laughed.

 **"He's cute." Kuroko said, chasing Kagami around with Nigou in his hands.**

 **"Don't, Kuroko!" Kagami yelled. "I'll kill you later!"**

 **'It must be on purpose.' The rest of the Seirin team thought.**

This caused everyone to laugh even harder. "You are evil, Tetsu." Aomine said while laughing. Everyone agreed.

 **The screen changed to Seirin team training at the pool.**

"That's a good idea." Akashi said. "Practicing in the pool will improve your leg muscles, hence improve your running and jumping ability."

"Didn't Momoi-san came to our school that day?" Kuroko asked.

"Yep." Momoi said. "Because I couldn't wait to see Tetsu-kun!"

 **"Make sure you pay attention to stretching more than usual." Riko said. "We'll start off with squats!" On Riko's whistle cue, the Seirin team would do one squat. Kagami was sitting on the bench, since his leg still has not healed yet.**

 **After a while, Riko said "Okay! Take one minute break."**

 **"These pool exercises are tough." Izuki said.**

 **Kuroko was lying on the pool face down due to exhaustion. "Kuroko, don't sleep!" Hyuga yelled. "Don't just float there."**

"That's right Kurokocchi!" Kise said. "You're going to drown if you sleep like that." Takao said causally.

 **The Seirin team resumed their training. Meanwhile Nigou decided to watch the team practice, so he sat near the bench at the pool. Kagami immediately shifted away as soon as he noticed Nigou.**

 **Nigou happily watched the team train while Kagami looked at him with a wary eye. "What a cute dog!" Momoi said.**

 **The Seirin team at the pool looked at the source of the voice and choked on water when they saw Momoi in her cyan color swimsuit. Momoi smiled at them.**

The GoM and Touou sighed. Meanwhile some of the boys were watching Momoi at the screen with dreamy eyes, while others looked normal with a slight blush.

 **"Momoi-san." Kuroko said.**

 **"You know her?" Koganei asked Kuroko.**

 **"Uh, who are you?" Riko asked Momoi.**

 **"Um, how should I put it?" Momoi said. "I'm Tetsu-kun's girlfriend."**

"Huh!?" Some people said. "That's how she likes to introduce herself." Aomine said.

 **"I couldn't wait for the championship league so I came here."**

 **"Tetsu-kun…" Riko said with a bemused expression.**

 **"Kuroko Tetsuya-kun." Momoi said with a smile.**

 **"What!?" The entire Seirin team shouted.**

Some people (mainly GoM and Touou) burst out into laughter.

 **"You have a girlfriend!?" Furi asked Kuroko.**

 **"No. She was my manager in middle school." Kuroko said.**

 **'Teikou…?' Hyuga thought as he looked at Momoi with surprise.**

 **'The championship league?' Riko thought. 'Are we up against her school next?'**

"You guys didn't check the bracket?" Susa asked. "Not at that time." Izuki said.

 **"Tetsu-kun!" Momoi said as she ran to Kuroko who just got out of the pool. "Long time no see!" She hugged him "I missed you."**

 **"I can't breath Momoi-san." Kuroko said.**

 **Most of Kuroko's teammates stared at him with a jealous expression. 'I don't know what's going on! But I'm unbelievably jealous Kuroko!'**

Seirin scratched their cheeks in embarrassment while everyone else laughed. Although some of them could understand Seirin's sentiments.

 **'Kuroko, you lucky bastard!'**

 **'I hope you die!'**

 **"Wait, why Kuroko?" Koganei asked. "He's dull, invisible and boring."**

"Why don't you just tell him how you really feel?" Aomine muttered. Meanwhile Koganei sheepishly apologized to Kuroko. Kuroko waved it off.

 **"What? That's what so good about him." Momoi said.**

"Huh?" Some people said.

 **"But isn't the way he becomes a different person when he plays striking?"**

"Thank you Momoi-san." Kuroko said. Momoi blushed. "T-T-There's no need for T-T-Tetsu-kun to thank me." She said with a stammer.

 **"Besides...He gave me a popsicle."**

"How is that relevant?" Kasamatsu asked.

 **"What?" Seirin said.**

 **The screen changed to show a bunch of people in Teikou uniform standing in front of a convenient store eating ice-cream. The screen showed Momoi in her Teikou uniform watching them all by herself.**

"A flashback." Susa said.

 **'That must be nice.' Momoi thought. 'Eating popsicles with everyone...'**

 **"Excuse me." Kuroko said calling out to Momoi. "I don't want this anymore so you can have it." He gave Momoi his popsicle stick.**

 **"I can have it?" Momoi said with a annoyed look. "Don't you think it's rude giving someone your garbage?" She flipped over the stick and it said winner. An arrow pierced through Momoi.**

"What?" Almost everyone said. "She fell in love all because of that?" After a moment, they sighed and muttered "Women."

'In other words, she likes Kuroko because of the gentlemen-like attitude he treats her with.' Akashi thought. 'Being considerate of her feelings and helping her feel better when she is down.'

 **The screen changed to present time. Seirin stared at Momoi with a blank look as she said "That's why I wanted to go to the same school as Tetsu-kun. But, but.."**

"But I had to look after stupid Dai-chan." Momoi said grumpily. "I never asked you to look after me." Aomine growled at her. "Oh please, if it weren't for me you would be totally lost." Momoi said. "Especially considering the fact it was my test that made sure you passed your classes and is still part of the basketball team." Aomine had nothing to counter that.

 **"Momoi-san, you're voice echoes inside the pool, so please don't yell." Kuroko told her.**

 **'What's going on?' Seirin wondered.**

Everyone else were wondering the same thing.

 **"Who does she think she is?" Riko said. "Just because she is kinda cute, you guys are making way too much fuss over her." She turned to Hyuga. "Right Hyuga-kun?"**

 **"Yeah, right." Hyuga said as he steal a glance at Momoi.**

 **Riko realizing what Hyuga was doing gave him a blank look. "Don't try to sneak glances at her!" She said in anger. The screen changed to show Nigou watching Riko throw Hyuga into the pool.**

Everyone laughed. For some reason, Nigou's reaction to the scene made it more hilarious.

 **"You'll kill Hyuga-san!" Momoi said.**

 **"Huh?" Hyuga said looking at Momoi. "How do you know my name?"**

 **"I know all of you." She said. "Seirin basketball club captain, and clutch shooter, Hyuga-san."**

 **The screen showed Izuki. "The eagle-eye point guard, Izuki-san."**

 **Then Mitobe, "The silent and hard working hook shooter, Mitobe-san."**

 **The Kagami. "The power forward with incredible jumping power, Kagami-kun."**

 **Lastly it showed Koganei and Tsuchida. "Koganei-san and Tsuchida-san."**

"As expected of Sa-chin." Murasakibara said. While those didn't know Momoi's ability looked amazed.

 **"What?" Koganei said.**

 **"That's it?" Tsuchida said.**

 **"And lastly…" Momoi said. "The barely-B coach, Riko-san."**

 **Riko was clearly not pleased. "Don't be ridiculous!" She yelled.**

 **"Momoi-san…" Kuroko said. "Did you really go to Aomine-kun's school?"**

 **"Yeah." Momoi said with a somber look.**

 **Momoi walked up to Nigou. "I really did want to go to your school, Tetsu-kun." She said as she kneel down in front of Nigou. "But who knows what he'll do if I don't watch him."**

 **"He looks just like you." Momoi said staring at Nigou. She went to pat him but he won't let her. "What's wrong?" Nigou stared at her with suspicious eyes.**

 **"He's so cute!" She said.**

"Arf" Nigou said. Somehow he was in front of Touhou's bench. Aomine, Sakurai and Momoi immediately started patting him. "No matter how many times I look at him, he is just so cute." Momoi said.

 **The screen changed to show a street basketball court. Kagami was dribbling a basketball. 'I can't sit around anymore.' he thought.**

"You idiot!" Hyuga said. "No basketball until you're healed."

"I know!" Kagami said. "The coach already lectured me about it."

 **'The pain's almost gone!' Kagami went for the jump but he couldn't.**

"You're still not fully healed." Midorima said.

 **"Hey!" A voice called out to Kagami. Kagami turned to look at who it is. It was Aomine. "You're Kagami Taiga, right?"**

"Enter the aho." Kagami muttered.

 **"Play me. I'll test you." Aomine said.**

"Dai-chan, I told you Kagami was in no condition to play!" Momoi yelled at Aomine.

"Who cares, it's in the past." Aomine said. A tick appeared in Momoi's forehead. She hit Aomine with her clipboard. "Ow" Aomine said.

 **"What?" Kagami said. "Who the hell are you? I don't take kindly to guys who challenge me without an introduction."**

 **"I'm not asking how you feel." Aomine said. "If I tell you to play, you'll play."**

"Bossy." Everyone said.

 **"I'll tell you my name at least. It's Aomine Daiki."**

 **'Aomine?' Kagami thought in surprise. "I've heard of you're name." Kagami told Aomine. "But you can't expect me to just say yes when you talk down on me like…"**

 **Aomine laughed. "Come on, now!" he said. "I said I'm not asking. Shut up and play. No one is expecting a real match. I told you, I'm testing you."**

 **Kagami grit his teeth.**

 **"I'm not looking for something that doesn't exist, like a player stronger than myself." Aomine said.**

"Which is why we lost." Touou said.

 **"I just want to know how much you can do to relieve my boredom."**

 **Kagami sighed. "From Kise to Midorima, the Generation of Miracles are full of guys who piss me off."**

The GoM glared at Kagami.

 **"But you're exceptional even among them." Kagami said. "I'll crush you."**

"Ha!" Aomine said. "I won that match."

"That's because I was injured!" Kagami said. Everyone else just sighed.

 **"Congratulations on making it to the Championship League." Momoi said.**

 **"Momoi-san is going as well right?" Kuroko said.**

 **"Huh?" Momoi said in surprise. "Did I already tell you?"**

 **"You said you couldn't wait until the championship league." Kuroko said.**

 **Momoi laughed sheepishly. "Did I?"**

 **"Yes" Kuroko said.**

 **"That's because the next time we meet, we will be on different benches." Momoi said.**

 **"Yes." Kuroko said.**

 **"I watched a video of your game against Midorin." Momoi said. "It was a great game. Kagami-kun...He plays just like how he used to."**

 **"Yes." Kuroko said.**

 **"Watching you two play brought back a lot of memories." Momoi said.**

 **There was a flashback and the screen showed Aomine and Kuroko in their Teikou uniform. "Nice pass, Tetsu!" Aomine said.**

Aomine grimaced.

 **"Kuro-chin and Mine-chin are infuriatingly in tune with one another as usual." Murasakibara said.**

 **"Kurokocchi, I wish you would pass to me sometimes!" Kise said.**

 **"Tell the captain." Kuroko said to Kise.**

 **"After watching that play, we'll have to make this our standard course." Akashi said.**

 **"I really don't get it." Aomine said.**

"No surprise." Some people said. "So Aomine was as dumb as he is today." Wakamatsu said.

 **"Testu and I can't agree on anything but we play basketball really well together."**

"That's for certain." The rest of the GoM said. "Really?" Serin asked. "Yeah." Kise said. "As such there were times when those two argued, but Kurokocchi always won them."

"Aomine-kun could never beat me in an argument." Kuroko said, while Aomine huffed.

 **"I wonder why?" Kise said.**

 **"Kuroko is a shadow." Midorima said.**

 **"What?" Kise said.**

 **"The stronger the light, the darker the shadow." Midorima said. "It's not as if we aren't in tune with Kuroko, but Aomine's light is the brightest."**

"For someone who doesn't get along with Tet-chan, you sure know him well." Takao said to Midorima. Midorima did not say anything.

 **The screen changed to present time with Kuroko looking at his fist. The scene changed to Touou. "Hey." Imayoshi said greeting the members at the gym.**

"Looks like I made my debut." Imayoshi said.

 **They all greeted him back. "Where's Aomine?" Imayoshi asked.**

 **"He went off somewhere." Wakamatsu said. "He's probably skipping."**

"There's me." Wakamatsu said.

 **Imayoshi sighed. "He's incorrigible."**

"He can be." The GoM said while Aomine glared at them.

 **"Oi Sakurai," Imayoshi called out to Sakurai.**

 **"Huh? Hai, Sorry!" Sakurai said.**

"What?" Some people said.

 **"What?" Imayoshi said. "I could have stopped him, but I couldn't so I…"**

 **"Don't worry about it." Imayoshi quickly said.**

 **"I'm sorry I'm alive." Sakurai said.**

 **"You're sorry you're alive?" Imayoshi asked.**

 **Sakurai started to apologize profusely, as the rest of Touou looked on blankly.**

Sakurai started to apologize as well. It took a while for Touou to calm him down. Everyone else just sighed.

 **Imayoshi tried to calm him down but it only made matter worse. "Also, Momoi isn't here." Wakamatsu said.**

 **"Oh don't worry about that." Imayoshi said. "It's her job."**

 **The scene changed back to Momoi and Kuroko.**

"This episode is all over the place." Aomine said.

 **"I prefer the way Aomine-kun used to play with you." Momoi said. "He started playing by himself. Became isolated from the team, I thought losing would change him."**

"It did." Touou said.

 **"But he doesn't lose. No one can stop him even by himself."**

 **Kuroko stared at Momoi. "Sorry." Momoi said sheepishly. "Conversation about the past always turns dark."**

 **"Will he change?" Kuroko asked. "If someone stops him, will Aomine-kun change?"**

"Yep." Kuroko said.

 **"I know Aomine-kun's strength." Kuroko said. He stood up. "But I won't be facing him alone. I promise I will beat Aomine-kun."**

"Thank you, Tetsu-kun." Momoi said. "It's something I wanted as well." Kuroko said.

 **The screen changed to the street basketball court. Kagami was sweating while Aomine looked like he barely broke a sweat. "This is ridiculous." Aomine said. "Did you really beat Midorima?"**

 **"Bastard." Kagami said.**

 **"Tetsu's judgement must be clouded." Aomine said. "You can't bring out his full potential. He's a shadow. The stronger the light, the darker the shadow."**

"Did you just copy what Midorima-kun said?" Kuroko asked Aomine. "No!" Aomine denied with a red face.

 **Before Kagami could react, Aomine passed him. "Your light is too dim." Aomine said.**

 **The ending started to play.**

"Oh look, an ending." Takao said. "I figured there would be one since we had an opening."

 **The screen showed a wall full of drawings. As the music played, the screen showed Seirin's members one at a time.**

"I think I saw me." Kiyoshi said. "It is close to your debut time." Izuki said.

 **The screen then showed Kuroko and the GoM in their Teikou uniform.**

"Why can we only see Kurokocchi's face clearly?" Kise asked.

 **The screen showed a younger version of Kagami.**

"That's from L.A." Kagami said with wide eyes.

 **The screen showed Serin's upperclassmen together with Kiyoshi. It then showed the GoM one at a time.**

"Figures it show the other me." Akashi said.

 **The screen showed Nigou trying to get on top of a basketball, but the ball slipped away and he landed on the floor.**

"How cute!" Some people said.

 **It showed scenes from various matches. Then it changed to show a picture of Kuroko standing in front of building with Nigou surrounded by children. In the picture Kagami was leaving the building.**

'When is this from?' Everyone wondered.

 **The screen changed to all of Seirin with their backs facing the camera looking on at the horizon.**

 **The screen went blank and showed a picture. In the picture Kuroko was lying down while Aomine had his hands covering Kuroko's eyes.**

"I was trying to make Tetsu get some rest." Aomine said. "He looked like he was going to die any minute."

*I know there is many versions of the opening but I choose this one since it was the one you can find in youtube.

Sorry for not updating for so long. I had my summer job which was exhausting since I had to fast for Ramadan and then I had to celebrate Eid.

Hope you enjoy the chapter!


	20. Chapter 20

Hey Guys! I hope you liked the last chapter. The next few chapters are going to be hard for me to write so be patient with me. For those of you who are curious about the Teikou Hawaii Story, search "the miracle that crossed the sea". That is the title of the story.

Episode 15

 **The screen showed Himuro standing in front of a mic.**

"Oh please don't tell me I sing this opening as well." Himuro said with a sigh. "Looks like it." Everyone told.

 **The opening plays as Himuro sings the song.**

"Cheer up Muro-chin." Murasakibara said. "You have a good voice."

 **The episode starts with Touou having lunch. "Thank you for the food." Sakurai said cheerfully.**

 **Wakamatsu looked at Sakurai's lunch. "It's cute." He said.**

" **What?" Sakurai said**

" **Did you accidently take your little sister's lunch?" Wakamatsu asked him.**

" **Oh sorry," Sakurai said. "But I made this myself so I don't think I'd…"**

"That's impressive." Some of the boys said. "It's nothing." Sakurai said with embarrassment.

" **You made it yourself?" Wakamatsu said in surprise.**

" **Oh, that looks good." Aomine said as he took a food from Sakurai's plate.**

"Isn't that ironic?" Kuroko said. "What?" Everyone asked. "It's nothing." Kuroko said. "I just found it ironic that Aomine-kun is eating food from someone else's lunch when in middle school, he told off Haizaki-kun for eating food from my plate."

Everyone snorted while Aomine tried to avoid eye contact.

" **Aomine." Wakamatsu said.**

" **Hey." Aomine said.  
"Where were you?" Wakamatsu asked him. "You can't skip practice for no reason. You are coming to practice this afternoon, right?"**

" **You can't be serious." Aomine laughed. "This is really good, give me the rest."**

" **Uh, sorry, go ahead." Sakurai said.**

" **Don't just give it to him, Sakurai." Wakamatsu yelled.**

"Sorry." Sakurai apologized.

" **Shut up" Aomine said. "I can skip practice if I have a reason, right?" Everyone looked at him. "They said they'd confiscate my Mai photo book if I leave it here." Aomine said. "I came to get it."**

"God! You are a perv." Kagami said. "How the freaking hell are you friends with him is beyond me, Kuroko." Aomine scowled at him while Kuroko shrugged. "He does have a nice side." Kuroko said.

 **Aomine was about to leave the gym but Wakamatsu stopped him. "Enough already!" He said. "I'm telling you to go to practice."**

" **I'll forgive you this once." Aomine said. He kneed Wakamatsu.**

" **Aomine!" Imayoshi said.**

" **I told him I would do it." Aomine said as he walked away. "Practice, practice, don't make me laugh." He stopped walking. "Ryo, how many points did I score in the last game?"**

" **Uh, 82 points." Sakurai answered. Aomine took a basketball and went for a dunk. The force of the dunk was so hard that he broke the hoop.**

" **Oh, I did it again." Aomine said holding the hoop. "Now, what was I trying to say again." He tossed the hoop. "You can tell me to practice after you perform better than me. Not that you ever will."**

"Jerk." Everyone told him. "Oh I just remembered." Akashi said. "Here's the training regime that I prepared for Daiki." Akashi said, handing a bunch of papers to Imayoshi. "It's for the entire camp. He can start of by doing a sixth of the pile tomorrow since 5 days have already passed."

Aomine looked at the pile and his face paled. He is so dead by the time he reaches the end of the pile. "Oi Akashi, isn't this a bit too much?" He asked. Akashi raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about, this should be fine for you considering the amount of training back in Teikou." He said with a smile. "The only way this would be a problem is if you have been slacking off and thus lost your form." Aomine wanted to tell him that he has kinda been slacking off but zipped up when he realized it won't help his case.

"Oh wait." Akashi said as his smile turned a little menacing. "That's exactly what you have been doing, isn't it?" Aomine shivered. "In that case, you can do another sixth to the one I have already assigned and I'll add more to your training tomorrow as punishment for being so rude to your seniors."

"Yes, captain." Aomine said meekly. Meanwhile some people were either trying hard not to laugh at Aomine's predicament, made notes to never make Akashi angry or felt sorry for Aomine.

" **Are you okay, Wakamatsu?" Imayoshi asked to Wakamatsu. "Sorry about that."**

" **Why are you apologizing, Captain?" Wakamatsu said.**

" **You are not wrong." Imayoshi said. "But don't say anything to Aomine. Meritocracies are hardly unusual."**

" **But…"**

" **Do you know the golfer Tiger Woods?"**

" **Huh?"**

" **What about Shaq?"**

" **You mean Shaquille O'Neil?"**

" **Yep." Imayoshi said. The screen showed an image of Tiger Woods. "Tiger won tons of games by hitting the ball too far so they extended courses and added regulations." The screen showed Shaq doing a basketball dunk. "Shaq, too. He was too strong so there was a dramatic increase of rough play to stop him. That's why they made the no-offense zone, so the offenses wouldn't be charged with fouls. In the world of sports, sometimes when a single player is too strong, they change the rules. They're not common but they really do exist. They are unfairly strong...these monsters."**

 **The screen changed to show the title of the episode "Don't Make Me Laugh."**

"Didn't Aomine already say that at the beginning?" Susa asked. "Yep." Everyone said.

 **The episode starts off at Seirin High. "Everyone, the names of all the school appearing in the championship league are out!" Riko told everyone. Everyone took a copy of the list and looked at it. "As you can see, A block is us, B block is Touou Gakuen, C block is Meisei and D block is Senshinkan. These 4 schools will compete to represent our region."**

" **This is a fresh league chart." Hyuga said.**

" **Until last year, the Tokyo representatives always included the three kings." Izuki said.**

 **Koganei was staring at the bracket intensely. "I've been thinking…" he said. "We beat two of those team right?"**

'Is he going to say what I think he is going to say?' Everyone thought.

" **Do you think this year we could make it all the way?"**

'Unfortunately, no.' Seirin thought. "You shouldn't say stuff like that Koganei." Kiyoshi said. "You'll end up cursing yourself."

" **You!" Izuki said.**

" **You said it." Hyuga said.**

Everyone chuckled.

" **Even if we lose to Momoi-chan and Aomine, if we beat the others…"**

" **It's not Senshinkan." Riko said.**

" **What?" Koganei asked.**

" **Those two go to Touou Gakuen." Riko said.**

"Why Touou?" Everyone asked Aomine and Momoi. "I went because Dai-chan went." Momoi said. "I wasn't really interested about any of the school prospect." Aomine said with a shrug. "I choose the school because of an...unusual conversation with someone." Imayoshi gave an amused smile.

" **What!?" Seirin was shocked.**

" **I thought all the GoM went to well-known schools!" Koganei said.**

" **I thought he would have gone to a strong school like Midorima." Izuki said.**

" **I looked it up, so I am sure." Riko said.**

" **That's unheard of." Hyuga said.**

" **Their history isn't impressive." Riko said. "But they've been putting energy into their scouting efforts recently, recruiting promising athletes from all across the country."**

"Our coach has exceptional persuasion skills." Imayoshi said. "Make that coach and captain." His teammates muttered. "Did you say something?" Imayoshi asked them with his usual smile. "No." They quickly replied.

" **In the last few years, they rapidly gained power and this year's lineup is comparable to Shutoku."**

"Thank you." Touou said proudly.

" **Hey!" Kagami said as he came into the gym.**

" **You're late." Hyuga said.**

" **Sorry." Kagami apologized. "Cleaning up took longer than expected." For some reason, Nigou barked at him.**

" **Nigou?" Riko said looking at Nigou. Realizing something, she stared at Kagami with a furious look. Kagami stopped noticing Riko's glare. Using her eyes, Riko realized that Kagami's leg wasn't as good as it should be. Riko stomped up to Kagami. "Kagami-kun, did you play basketball?" Riko asked him.**

"Uh oh" Everyone said. "Busted." Aomine said with a smirk. "You are quite the smart dog, Nigou." Kise said patting Nigou-who was currently sitting with Kaijou. 'You goddamn evil traitorous dog!' Kagami mentally raged as he glared at Nigou from Yosen's seat.

" **N-No." Kagami lied.**

"Idiot, did you forget that Riko can see your stats?" Hyuga said. Kagami twitched because he did-indeed-forget.

" **You've gotten worse." Riko said.**

" **Well, I…" Kagami said. "A little…"**

 **Riko grabbed Kagami's head in anger. "You Bakagami." Riko raged.**

 **Kagami futilely apologized.**

" **How many times did I tell you?" Riko said. "Are your ears just for decoration? Are they just holes in your head?" In the background, Nigou was rolling a basketball across the stage.**

Everyone laughed.

" **You'll just be watching today!" Riko said. "Get a heating pad from the nurse's office! Since you can't sprint, walk all the way there with your hands!"**

" **Seriously?" Kagami said. Everyone in Seirin just looked on with a blank look.**

 **The screen changed to show Kagami walking to the nurse's office by his hands.**

This caused everyone to laugh harder.

" **Kagami-kun…" Kuroko called out.**

" **Kuroko" Kagami said. He stood back up on his feet.**

" **Kagami-kun, you're stupid but…" Kuroko said.**

" **Where did that come from?" Kagami interrupted him.**

"You are." Some people said while other people chuckled. Kagami just scowled.

" **But I don't think you'd do something reckless without a reason." Kuroko said finishing his sentence. Kagami calmed down. "Did something happen?"**

 **The screen changed back to Seirin gym. Riko angrily stomped her feet. "I don't believe that idiot!" She said.**

" **Now, now coach." Hyuga said trying to calm her down. "So who are we playing first?"**

" **I'm mad because we won't have Kagami!" Riko said. "Our first game is against Touou Gakuen!" This naturally shocked everyone.**

" **I played Aomine." Kagami said. The screen changed back to him and Kuroko. "He said he used to be your light. It sounded to me like you weren't ordinary teammates. What happened between you two in middle school?"**

Aomine winced while Kuroko stared at the screen with a blank expression.

 **The screen showed one of the gyms of Teikou.**

"That's the gym we practiced when we were in Teikou." Kise said. "A flashback, then." Miyaji said.

 **Aomine and Kise were having a one-on-one match. Aomine passed Kise and scored a basket.**

"Nothing unusual." Aomine said with a shrug. Kise just scowled.

" **Oh, come on!" Kise complained. "One more time! Just one more time!"**

" **You're naive, Kise." Aomine said with a bright smile.**

"I know this is middle school but I stillcan't get used to Aomine smiling innocently like a kid." Wakamatsu said in a mutter. Sakurai-who was sitting next to him-heard him and completely agreed.

" **Well, you play pretty well for someone who just started."**

Aomine's teammates looked at Aomine with a shocked expression. "What?" Aomine asked. "You are being nice!" His teammates said with disbelief. Aomine frowned at them.

 **The screen showed Momoi standing at the side observing them with a smile.**

Momoi had a nostalgic smile on her face.

" **Kise's not bad against Aomine." A senior standing next to Momoi said. "Isn't this his first time?"**

" **I think he's got talent." Momoi said.**

"Thanks Momoicchi." Kise said with a bright smile.

" **He's tall and he's a quick learner. He might even become a great player!"**

" **In that case, Aomine with his senses…" The senpai said.  
"Well, I don't know about that." Momoi said warily.**

"Uh, what the heck are you talking Satsuki?" Aomine said. "I am a fantastic player." Everyone else just sighed.

" **He's just a longtime basketball junkie."**

Everyone snored. "Don't forget pervert." Wakamatsu said. "Longtime Basketball Junkie Pervert."

" **A junkie, huh?" the senpai said. "Well he does have more talent and practice harder than anyone on the team."**

" **Yeah" Momoi said. "He loves basketball more than anyone else."**

"You know…" Kuroko said. "I can't seem to remember who that senpai was."

"Neither can I." His former teammates said after thinking for a while.

 **The screen changed back to Kuroko. "None of the Generation of Miracles started off as extraordinary players."**

"Really?" Those that didn't know the story said. This caused the GoM to roll their eyes. 'Well, duh!' They all thought.

" **However, Aomine-kun bloomed sooner and more suddenly than the rest of us."**

"Really?" Imayoshi said. "Aomine...not Akashi?" Akashi shrugged. "I was the last person to have my skilled bloom." He said. Everyone stared at Akashi with wide eyes, So the emperor was not always first…?

 **The flashback returned with Aomine making a basket.**

" **Amazing Aomine!"**

" **He's destroying them all by himself!"**

" **No one can stop him."**

 **The screen changed to a convenience store.**

The GoM had nostalgic smiles on their face as they recognized the convenience store.

" **Here." Aomine said giving Kuroko a popsicle.**

" **Aomine-kun, you've been skipping practice more lately." Kuroko said.**

" **Yeah, it's cool." Aomine said. "If I practice, I'll get even better. The harder I try the more boring basketball becomes. What I want must already be..."**

 **The screen changed to Kise talking to Midorima.**

"There's a combination you don't see very often." Some people said. "For some reason, Midorimacchi and I always run into one another." Kise said with a shrug. 'Those would be the days when Cancer have bad luck.' Midorima thought.

" **Don't you think Aominecchi's gotten real strong lately?" Kise asked Midorima. "He must have so much fun with skills like those!"**

" **I think it's just the opposite." Midorima said.**

Aomine raised an eyebrow. 'Smartass megane.' He thought.

" **What? Why?" Kise asked.**

" **Not only does he love basketball more than anyone else," Midorima said. "But there is also something he desires more than any other."**

"An opponent that he can play with everything he got." Some people said.

" **A rival who can stand as his equal. However, he is too strong. He'll never find a rival that'll fill the gap between him and the other players."**

"Never say never." Some people told Midorima. "How was I supposed to know that 2 years later an American returnee will be enrolling in a no name school and kick all of our asses!?" Midorima growled.

 **The screen went back to Aomine and Kuroko. "Basketball's just a game anyway." Aomine said. "I'm going to start skipping games too."**

" **You can't do that." Kuroko said as he dipped a popsicle down Aomine's shirt.**

 **Aomine flinched because of the cold popsicle. "Popsicle?" Aomine said as he looked at Kuroko with a surprised expression.**

Despite the serious mood, everyone couldn't help but laugh at the scene except for Aomine who glared at Kuroko. "Why a popsicle, Tetsu?" Aomine asked. "I needed something to get your attention and the popsicle was the only thing I had." Kuroko said. "By the way, you owe me a popsicle because of that."

"Huh!?" Aomine said while everyone laughed even harder. "Forget it! I'm not buying you anything, especially if that thing has gone down my shirt.!"

"It wouldn't have gone down your shirt, if you weren't such an Ahomine." Kuroko told him. Aomine couldn't argue against that so he sighed. "Fine…" he said with a grumble. "I'll buy you a goddamn popsicle." Kuroko nodded while Touou stared at Kuroko in amazement. "Damn, he's good." Wakamatsu said. "He's almost as good as Imayoshi."

'Actually, I think he is better than me.' Imayoshi thought. 'I wonder if he'll give me any tips.'

" **It takes everything I have to keep up with everyone else, so I don't know how you feel but..." Kuroko said while Aomine complained about the cold and sticky popsicle. "No matter how large difference in our skill, if I were opponent I would never want you to do that."**

"That is absolutely correct." Everyone agreed with Kuroko's statement.

 **Meanwhile, Aomine had finally gotten the popsicle stick. Unfortunately, it was a losing stick.**

This caused everyone to laugh again. "Only Kurokocchi can win a winning stick." Kise said.

" **Besides I'm sure you'll meet someone more than amazing than yourself soon." Kuroko said.**

'And he was right.' Aomine thought. 'It was just a lot later than I expected.'

" **You little jerk." Aomine said with a laugh. "You're right." He held out his fist which Kuroko bumped.**

"So you used to bump fists with him as well?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "That's right." Kuroko said. For some reason, Kagami didn't seem pleased with the idea.

 **The screen changed to another match. Aomine had scored his 40th point. 'Aomine-kun's really focused!' Momoi thought as he watched the match from the sidelines.**

'It's because of what coach Shirogane and Tetsu told me.' Aomine thought.

' **His opponent is one of the best middle school forwards, but he's crushing him!'**

 **Kuroko made a pass towards Aomine who got the ball and passed the defender. Realizing it was futile, the defender didn't even bother to try and stop him.**

'Oh dear.' Those that didn't know the story thought.

' **Huh?' Aomine thought with wide eyes. Turns out none of the players were bothering to stop him. 'What is this?' Aomine thought as he made a basket. 'Have they given up already?' He gave an ironic smile. 'Is this what happens when I try even a little? If my opponent loses the will to play what's fun about basketball anymore?'**

 **Kuroko walked up to Aomine, holding out his fist to congratulate Aomine.**

" **Tetsu." Aomine said. "I don't think you were wrong, but… I can't"**

" **Huh?" Kuroko said.**

" **They all suck. I'll never find what I am looking for." Aomine said. "The only one who can beat me is me." With that he ran off, he did not even bother to return Kuroko's fist bump. Kuroko could only stare at his light with his fist still waiting for the fist bump.**

Aomine flinched as he looked down at his hand. He couldn't help but remember what Kuroko told him at the end of their match during the Winter Cup. _"Try to put yourself in the shoes of the ignored."_ Aomine closed his eyes, curled his hand into a fist and took a deep breath.

Even though everyone is trying to be understanding of Aomine's situation, they felt terrible for Kuroko. Nothing hurts more than being shunned by the people you care about. The rest of GoM felt even worse because shortly after this they did something much worse.

Despite knowing everything, Seirin couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards their teammates because the video made them realize just how much the situation hurt Kuroko. 'Sadly, this is nowhere near as bad as what's to come.' Seirin thought.

As for Kuroko, ever since the flashback of the match began Kuroko has been looking down at the table. He knew what was coming and therefore avoided looking at the video. When the moment happened, Kuroko closed his eyes and steeled himself. 'I don't think I can watch Teikou episodes.' He thought sadly. Even though, him and Ogiwara made up, he is just not strong enough to relive those memories for the third time, especially if it going to shown like this.

 **The screen changed back to Seirin. "We swept the tournament that year because of Aomine-kun's strength." Kuroko said. "But then the other four began to change too."**

"Let me guess," Imayoshi said. "The rest of you four became as discouraged as Aomine and so in order to make things fun for you, you decided to split up in high school and see who is the strongest amongst you."

The GoM flinched. "Looks like I hit the nail on the head." Imayoshi said.

"That explains why you split up, but what about Tet-chan..." Takao said. "Why did he decide to join you?" Kuroko flinched. "I had my reasons." He said.

" **Because of a certain event at the national tournament of our third year, I quit the Teikou basketball club."**

"What!?" Those that didn't know said. The GoM flinched again while Seirin grimaced.

"Why!?" Some people asked Kuroko. Kuroko avoided everyone's eyes. "I'm sorry but I am afraid I cannot say." Kuroko said. "Please wait patiently for the video, when the time comes it'll explain everything." Those that didn't know the answer weren't satisfied with Kuroko's answer but nonetheless listened to his wishes.

 **Kagami looked at Kuroko. "I see."**

"You could've just told me the whole story." Kagami said to Kuroko. "I knew you were hiding something."

"I'm sorry." Kuroko said to Kagami. "I just wasn't ready yet."

Kagami sighed. "I know."

" **Well if there is one thing I can say, it's...don't get ahead of yourself, idiot!"**

The tension from the previous conversation all disappeared as everyone except the GoM laughed. The GoM just scowled at Kagami.

" **It's boring because you are too strong? The only one who can beat me is me? The Generation of Miracles are full of those guys!"**

The GoM scowled turned into a glare. Aomine in particular wanted to strangle the annoying Bakagami. Everyone else laughed even harder. Kagami just smirked. He did not regret a single thing he said.

" **It's so funny, I could burst a spleen."**

" **You mean gut." Kuroko said.**

 **Kagami held out his fist. "Let's go beat him and wake him up." Kuroko returned the fist bump.**

 **Momoi came out of her shower wrapped around a towel.**

A couple of the boys were looking at the screen with a blush while some tried to stay normal.

' **The deciding game is today.' Momoi thought. She thought back to the conversation she had with Kuroko by the pool. She smiled.**

 **The screen changed to show Hyuga running. 'It's almost time.' He thought.**

"Serious as ever." Kiyoshi said as he shook his head. "You would learn to take it easy, Hyuga."

"Shut up, you idiot!" Hyuga said.

 **The screen changed to Izuki's household. Izuki was eating food. "It's the championship league." A woman said.**

"Who's that?" Some people asked. "My mom." Izuki replied.

" **What?" Izuki said.**

" **It's today, right?" She said. "I'll go cheer you on! Since it's the championship league, I'll put on my championship makeup!"**

"So Izuki-senpai gets his horrible puns from his mother." Kuroko said. "What do you mean horrible!?" Izuki asked Kuroko. 'The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.' Everyone else thought.

" **Mom." Izuki said. "Thanks for the…"**

 **The screen changed to Mitobe's house as his siblings all said "food!".**

"Mitobe-senpai...that's a lot of siblings." Furi said wearily.

 **The table was absolutely hectic as Mitobe's siblings fought and complained over the food.**

"Man, that looks absolutely hectic." Miyaji said. "Kind of reminds me of my family dinner." Murasakibara said lazily. Mitobe was just staring at the screen with a fond expression.

 **Mitobe was serving food at the table. "Rin-nii, it's okay." One of his little sisters said. "You should eat. You have to go soon." Mitobe nodded.**

 **The screen changed to Koganei's house. It seems Koganei was still sleeping with a blanket wrapped around him like a chrysalis. His older sister pulled the blanket off of him and said. "You're gonna be late, you idiot!"**

"Who's that?" Everyone asked. "My sister." Koganei said. "Koganei-senpai looks a lot like his sister." Fukuda said.

" **Just a little longer…" Koganei said. "Besides the game doesn't start until tonight."**

" **You have school before that." His sister said swatting him with a fan.**

Everyone laughed while Koganei pouted. "That seriously hurts." He said.

 **The screen changed to Riko's house. Riko was going over some game plans while her father observes her from behind.**

"That's the guy that was sitting with our coach!" Takao told his teammates. "He called our coach Ma-boy."

"So he's Seirin's coach dad." Otsubo said.

" **You're really into it." Kagetora said to his daughter.**

 **His daughter jumped in shock. "Papa, can't you knock?" she exclaimed.**

" **Don't stay up all night!" Kagetora told her. "It's not good for your skin!"**

" **Tomorrow's opponent is really strong." She said. "I can't prepare too much." She yawned. "I guess I'm tired. I'll take a shower."**

 **The screen changed to Tsuchida leaving his house. He noticed there was a cat in front of his gate. "Meow." The cat said.**

"How cute." Some people said. Midorima twitched.

 **Tsuchida went to pet the cat but the cat bit his hand. "Ow!" Tsuchida said.**

'Evil creatures.' Midorima thought while everyone else gave a blank look.

 **The screen changed to Kagami playing basketball.**

"What else is new?" Seirin said with a snort.

' **They don't hurt. They don't hurt!' Kagami thought. 'All right, say your prayers, Aomine!'**

"Funny" Aomine said. "I seem to recall me winning the match."

"And I seem to recall getting back at you during the winter cup." Kagami said.

'Not this again!' Everyone else thought.

' **I'm going to win!'**

 **The screen changed to Kuroko looking at his fist. Below him, Nigou was eating. Kuroko patted him with a smile.**

"Interesting how it showed the family life of all Seirin members except the dynamic duo." Imayoshi said. "My dad is working in America so I live alone." Kagami said. "What about your mom?" Takao asked. "Don't have one." Kagami said. "Sorry." Some people said. Kagami shrugged.

"My family life isn't very interesting." Kuroko said. "It's just me, my parents and my grandmother." For some reason, everyone had a hard time believing Kuroko. After all, a family with an invisible blunt kid can by no means be uninteresting.

'Now that I think about it…' Seirin thought. 'Aside from things related to basketball, we don't know much about Kuroko.'

 **The screen changed to the evening as people gathered for the Championship League.**

'Oh boy' Seirin thought. 'We better prepare ourselves.'

" **A lot more people turn out for the championship league." Takao said looking around. Him and seniors are going to watch the games.**

"I don't see Midorima." Kasamatsu said. "He's there." Takao and Kise said.

" **Huh? Where's Midorima?" Miyaji asked.**

 **Takao showed him a message Midorima left him. It said "I don't want to."**

"Honestly Midorimacchi, would it hurt to go and watch a game with your teammates?" Kise asked Midorima in exasperation. Midorima just huffed.

 **Miyaji was not all pleased by the mail and with a "smile" said "Kimura, pineapple."**

" **Yes, I got a really green one too." Kimura said.**

"The green ones are the best kind." Miyaji said with a nod. 'Is anyone going to tell him that pineapples are food and not projectile objects.' Everyone else thought.

" **The Meisei vs Senshinkan game should go to Shenshinkan." Otsubo said observing the bracket. "The game that will shake the championship league is Seirin vs. Touou."**

 **Meanwhile at the Touou locker room. "Eh!?" Momoi said. "Aomine-kun's not here yet?"**

"Wait, what?" Some people asked. "He overslept." Aomine's teammates said. "Seriously!?" Those that were not at the game said. "Yep." Touou said.

'Looking back at our attitude, it's no wonder we lost at the Winter Cup.' Imayoshi thought.

" **He won't answer no matter how many times I call." Imayoshi said.**

" **That bastard…" Wakamatsu said. For some reason, Sakurai started to apologize.**

"Please don't start apologizing, Sakurai." Imayoshi said to Sakurai. "Yes, sorry" Sakurai said. "I mean...Sorry...I mean…"

'Please just stop.' Everyone else thought with a blank look.

" **I'll try calling him." Momoi said.**

 **Outside the locker, Momoi called Aomine's phone and he picked up this time. "There you are!" She said.  
"Yes?" Aomine said lazily.**

'And here I thought Atsushi was lazy.' Himuro thought with a blank look.

" **What are you doing right now? Where are you?" Momoi asked**

" **Where? At school?" Aomine replied. "Oh sorry, I overslept."**

" **You overslept?" Momoi said.**

 **Imayoshi took the phone from Momoi. "Aomine, how long until you can get here?" Imayoshi asked.**

" **Oh, Imayoshi-san." Aomine said.**

"He's pretty polite towards Imayoshi-san." Izuki said. "Imayoshi is the only one he is polite to." Susa said. "Don't talk about me as if I'm not here!" Aomine exclaimed.

" **I'll probably be there by the second half."**

" **We're counting on you!" Imayoshi said. "We are going up against Seirin!" "There you go again!" Aomine said. "Twenty minutes is more than enough to deal with those scrubs."**

'We should him who's a scrub.' Seirin thought. Kagami decided to voice his opinion. "Considering the fact you lost to said scrub, I wonder what does that make you?" Kagami said with a smirk. Aomine scowled. "I may have lost to your team but I never lost to you in one-on-one." He said. "Therefore, your team may not be a scrub but you certainly are!"

"Why you!" Kagami said. "Is there ever going to be a single day the two of you are not at each other's throat?" Kuroko asked his two lights with genuine curiosity. "He started it!" The two of them said simultaneously. Kuroko sighed.

"It doesn't matter who started it!" Midorima yelled at the two of them. "Just shut up and let us watch the episodes in peace." Akashi sighed. "Honestly, those two are such a handful." He said. Touou and Seirin completely agreed with him.

" **Do whatever you can during the first half."**

" **What? Hey…" Imayoshi said but Aomine hangs up before he said anything.**

 **Meanwhile at Seirin's locker room. "It's almost time!" Riko told her team. "Is everyone ready?" Everyone in Seirin looked very determined.**

" **Only three out of the four schools will be going to the Inter-High." Riko said. "Just like Koganei-kun said, it doesn't seem difficult at first glance. However…"**

 **Everyone near Koganei moved out of the way, while Izuki and Mitobe held him in place.**

"What's going on?" The rest of the schools asked. "You'll see." Seirin said while Koganei pouted.

" **What? Hey, wait…" Koganei said.**

 **Riko hit him hard with a white fan.**

"Ah," The some people said while others laughed. 'Seirin wouldn't be Seirin without these moments.' They thought

" **If you think we can lose one because it's a league game, we are finished." She said.**

Everyone completely agreed.

" **Why me?" Koganei said with tears**

"Because you're the one who made the comment." Seirin told Koganei. Everyone laughed while Koganei pouted.

" **It comes down to now!" Riko said holding out her hand. "We will win this game!"**

 **The screen changed to the court as both teams entered the court. Kagami noticed Aomine was there. "Excuse me" He said to Wakamatsu. Wakamatsu looked at him. "Where's Aomine?"**

" **That self-centered bastard is running late." Wakamatsu said.**

"Calling him a self-centered bastard is a little kind, don't you think?" Kagami asked Wakamatsu. "Hmm...you are right." Wakamatsu said. "I'll have to think of something."

"What?" Aomine said. "Are you guys friends now?"

"No." Kagami said. "We are just getting along due to our mutual dislike of you." Wakamatsu said.

 **Kagami and Kuroko were shocked by the news. "Sorry." Imayoshi said. "We are actually in a bind without him too. He said he'd show up in the second half. I guess you could call us the opening act."**

Everyone gave Imayoshi a blank look.

 **Seirin just stared at him.**

" **Kagami," Izuki said. "You already played Aomine once, right? You're motivation hasn't dropped, right?"**

" **No way." Kagami said. "If anything, I'm pissed! If these guy are the opening act, I'll pull so far ahead they won't be able to catch up and make their ace the world's biggest idiot!" He was surrounded by a dangerously red aura.**

"He already is." Kagami said. Aomine scowled.

" **I agree." Kuroko said. "Aomine-kun is dangerous. We should score as much points as we can. There's no point in getting angry at someone who isn't here."**

'Mature as ever.' Some people thought.

" **All right." Hyuga said. "You got all that. Let's go all out!"**

 **It was the tip off. Seirin got the tip off but Imayoshi quickly stole the ball away. Seirin was surprised by how fast Touou moved. 'He's fast!' Izuki thought.**

 **Hyuga went to defend against Imayoshi. 'We'll break away now and take control of the game!' He thought.**

" **You're quick, aren't you?" Imayoshi said. "We have no choice, then." He passed the ball. "We'll start by having our kamikaze captain pave the way for us."**

 **Sakurai took the ball and went for a three pointer. "Sorry!" He said.**

Sakurai started apologizing as well. Touou calmed him down and gave Imyoshi a blank stare. Imayoshi just shrugged.

 **The ball went in. 'A three!' Hyuga thought. 'His movements are incredibly fast!'**

' **They are not underestimating us!' Izuki thought.**

"Of course not" Touou said. "Momoi made sure we don't." Susa said.

" **Calling yourselves the opening act is evil." Hyuga told him.**

"Well he is Mako-chan's senpai." Mibuchi said. "Mako-chan?" Everyone else except Imayoshi said. Imayoshi just smirked. "Hanamiya Makoto-chan." Mibuchi said. There was a silence followed by a loud "WHAT!?"

"How the hell do you know that Reo-nee?" Hayama asked. "I saw him and Imayoshi-san talking to one another." Mibuchi said. "When I asked Mako-chan if he knew him, he said he's "an annoying senpai who wouldn't leave me alone"."

"I see Mako-chan is as rude as ever." Imayoshi said with a sigh. Outside the training camp, a certain uncrowned general sneezed.

" **What? I wasn't lying." Imayoshi said. "You'll know once Aomine gets here. I told you we are the opening act."**

 **The screen went blank and it showed Takao.**

"What's going on?" Some people asked.

 **The ending started to play and Takao started to sing the ending.**

"Eh!?" Some people said. "Takao sang the ending!" Miyaji exclaimed. "Now that I think about it…" Takao said. "The song does sound familiar."

"Isn't it the song, coach and I overheard you sing at the training camp." Kagami said. Takao blinked. "Oh yeah!" He exclaimed. Everyone gave them a blank look. 'You couldn't remember this earlier.'

 **The ending was same as the last episode except for one change.**

"Oh look, the picture of Kurokocchi and Kagamicchi is gone." Kise said.

 **Surely enough, instead of Kuroko and Kagami, it was a picture of Riko, Hyuga and Izuki waiting at Riko's house. Riko's dad was making a funny face for some reason.**

"I wonder why they changed the picture." Hyuga asked. "Who knows." Some people said.

 **After the ending played, the screen changed to another scene. Kuroko was playing basketball with Nigou beside him. All of a sudden, it started to rain.**

"Don't you hate it when that happens." Everyone asked rhetorically.

" **Nigou, come here." Kuroko said. He picked up Nigou and put a towel on top him. "You'll get soaked in the rain."**

"What about you?" Seirin and the GoM alongside other people asked.

 **A towel landed on Kuroko's head. Kuroko looked up and noticed it was Kagami. "Kagami-kun." Kuroko said. "What are you doing?" Kagami told him. "You'll catch a cold like that."**

"What about you?" Furi asked Kagami. "I haven't caught a cold since I was 5." Kagami said with a shrug.

 **The screen went blank.**

"That's the end of today's quota." Takao said. "Actually we have one more video to watch." Momoi said. "What?" Some people said.

Done! My God! This was a long one. Up next, Kuroko no Basket OVA: _Idiots can't win!_


	21. Chapter 21

Hi guys! SO...Looks like it's finally time for the OVA. The first one is Idiot's Don't Win. Random Question...what name do you prefer more, Kiseki no Sedai or Generation of Miracles?

OVA 1

 _Previously:_

" _Actually, we have one more video to watch." Momoi said._

" _What?" Some people asked._

"We have one more episode to watch." Momoi repeated herself. "But that's impossible." Kasamatsu said. "We are only suppose to watch 3 episodes a day." Momoi nodded. "Yep." Momoi said. "But this one is actually an OVA so technically we can still watch."

"I see." Akashi said. "What is it called?" Momoi looked at the title. "It's called Idiot's Don't Win" She said. Kagami twitched. "Ah" Seirin said. "We know what it is."

"Really?" Everyone else asked. "Yep." Izuki said. "It's about the exam period before the championship league."

"How do you know that?" Mayuzumi asked. Some people jumped since they haven't heard him speak in a while. "You'll see." Seirin said. "Well then...Let's watch." Momoi said.

 **The OVA started with a brief introduction of the GoM, Kuroko, Kagami and what has happened so far, done by Riko. "However...it's to soon to rejoice" Riko said concluding her narrative.**

"She's making it sound like as if the tests were the end of the world." Hayama said with a snort. 'That's because they were.' Seirin thought glancing at Kagami.

 **The title of the OVA appeared.**

"No opening?" Takao asked. "That's too bad."

" **Man, our coach always drives us around like this." Kagami grumbled. "What's with bringing all our midterm as well? I hope she's not planning anything crazy again."**

" **I don't know." Kuroko said. "All I've heard is that you can't play in the Inter-High, if you fail a test."**

" **Huh? Seriously?" Kagami asked.**

"That might be problem for Taiga." Himuro said with an amused smile. Everyone in Seirin except Kagami snorted. Kagami avoided everyone's eyes.

" **Yo Kuroko, Kagami." A voice called out to them. The two of them turned and noticed it was the freshmen trio.**

" **Oh," Kagami said. "Furihata, Kawahara and...Fukuda.**

" **You finally remembered our names." Fukuda said.**

"I'm not good at remembering names and faces." Kagami said in embarrassment.

" **I wonder why we are doing this now." Furihata said. "Finals are way off."**

"So you can improve on subjects you're bad at." All the seniors said.

" **Isn't it too early?"**

" **It might be related to the proficiency test in two days." Kuroko said.**

" **But aren't those totally unrelated to our grades?" Kawahara asked.**

" **What?" Furihata asked. "Is that so?"**

" **Then, what's the problem?" Kagami asked. "We should just focus on our practice."**

" **There's a huge problem." Riko said with an annoyed expression.**

"Is it just me or does you coach always appeared to be annoyed?" Wakamatsu asked. "She can be happy." Seirin said. "For example, when we win a match." Koganei supplied.

" **She's freaking me out." Fukuda said.**

'What else is new?' Seirin thought.

" **As you all know, the proficiency tests are in two days." Riko said. "And yes, they are unrelated to your grades. But…"**

 **Hyuga continued the explanation. "We have 300 students each year here." He said. "The test tells you exactly where you are placed.**

" **The bottom third have remedial classes next Saturday and** _ **that's**_ **the problem." Izuki said.**

"You guys have remedial classes?" Hayama asked. "We don't."

"Thank goodness for that." Mayuzumi muttered.

'If my memory serves me well…' Imayoshi thought. 'That Saturday was...Oh…This will be fun.'

" **Saturday...wait, the final league's!?" Kagami asked in shock.**

"That's not good." Those that were not at Seirin said. 'Especially when your ace _sucks_ at studying.' Seirin thought.

" **Right." Koganei said. "If you screw up in the tests, you can't play. You gotta deal with that before winning or losing."**

" **I get it." Kawahara said.**

" **And that's why we decided to check out who got poor midterm results." Hyuga said. "Anyone who does will face special training at the Coach's house."**

" **What, Coach's house!?" The freshmen said in surprise.**

" **We are only going to be studying, okay?" Riko said in embarrassment. Then her aura turned menacing. "Idiot's who miss games because of this can't expect late night fun from me."**

'Talk about a 180.' Everyone thought.

 **The freshmen were terrified. "Coach, you scared them stiff." Izuki whispered to her ear.**

" **Alright take out your midterms." Hyuga said.**

"They aren't going to actually show our midterm marks, are they?" Kawahara asked in a panic. "That's like an invasion of privacy!"

"This entire thing has been an invasion of privacy." Furihata said. "Half the things we don't want people to know are being known."

 **The freshmen gave their midterms to their seniors. "Here." Hyuga said giving Riko the midterms.**

" **Thanks." Riko said. She looked over the marks. "Furihata-kun, Kawahara-kun and Fukuda-kun...they all did well enough. Just don't forget to review on your own, okay?"**

" **Yes."**

" **We're safe."**

"They didn't show our marks!" Fukuda said cheerfully. "For some reason, I get the feeling that mine and Kagami-kun marks are going to be shown." Kuroko said. "For real!?" Kagami said to Kuroko in shock. The last thing he wants is his grades to shown to all their opponents!

' **All that's left…'**

 **Kuroko and Kagami gave their test papers to their seniors. 'Here it comes.' Hyuga thought. 'The most important ones for the finals.'**

' **Seirin's basketball future depends on these papers!' Izuki thought.**

" **Ok, let's starts with Kuroko-kun." Riko said. The screen showed Kuroko's midterm marks.**

'Wow...it's average.' Almost everyone thought while Kuroko sighed because they really did show his marks.

"Not bad Tetsu." Aomine said with an impressed look.

" **Wow, it's average." His seniors said simultaneously.**

" **It's not bad or anything!" Riko said quickly. "But it's not good either."**

" **But Japanese is pretty high!" Tsuchida said.**

" **But it's still pretty average." Koganei said. Meanwhile Kuroko was watching his seniors with a blank expression.**

Everyone laughed while Seirin's second years gave Kuroko an apologetic smile.

" **63 on Japanese History." Kagami said. "Kuroko, you're clever."**

'Oh dear…' Those that didn't know Kagami's marks thought.

" **Eh" The seniors looked at Kagami with an absolute terrified expression.**

" **No...it can't be...or rather as expected." Riko said weakly.**

 **The seniors looked at Kagami's midterms. As expected...they were horrible!**

"Wow...so bad." Kise said. "Were you honestly expecting better?" Midorima asked as he pushed up his glasses. "Honestly, no." Kise said. Everyone else agreed with Kise. Kagami just glared at them with a red face.

" **So bad!" The seniors said in absolute horror.**

" **I knew you are dumb, but to think you are this dumb!" Riko said.**

" **I think this is the first time I'm seeing a zero out of anything." Tsuchida said.**

" **And how the hell do you fail English, you are from America!?" They all asked Kagami simultaneously.**

Even though they shouldn't be laughing at someone's misery, everyone couldn't help but laugh.

" **Japan's English is too formal!" Kagami said defensively. "I got by just fine with feeling and instinct."**

"That may be true but you don't see me failing English, Taiga." Himuro told Kagami. "That's because Tatsuya's a genius." Kagami said with a grumble.

" **Don't get arrogant with me." Riko said as she tossed Kagami.**

"That goddamn hurts." Kagami said. Meanwhile the other schools were now downright terrified of Seirin's coach!

" **Oh man, we are all gonna have to work together for this one." Hyuga said.**

" **Are y'all- you all really that smart?" Kagami asked blankly.**

"They are at least smarter than you." The other schools said to Kagami. "In fact, I think everyone here is smarter than you." Mayuzumi said. "Except for Aomine." Susa said. "True." Imayoshi said "Aomine's intellect is close to Kagami."

"Oi!" Aomine said, while everyone else agreed with Imayoshi. Kagami grumbled underneath his breath.

 **Riko was clearly offended by Kagami's question. "Know your place!" She said kicking Kagami in the face.**

" **Course we are!" Hyuga said. "At least, more than you!"**

Everyone snorted.

" **Then, let's take this moment to announce our result in the last proficiency test." Koganei said proudly.**

"You must have done pretty well, if you wanted to boost about placement." Hayama said. Koganei gave a sheepish laugh.

" **First our captain: 112 out of 305!"**

" **Good enough for me." Hyuga said.**

" **Izuki Shun, 71!"**

"Not bad." Moriyama said. "I got the same placement." Moriyama said.

" **A high schooler with a high score! Good job, me." Izuki said.**

" **Ignoring that, Tsuchida Satoshi: 81!"**

Everyone laughed while Izuki pouted.

" **Mitobe Rinnosuke, 74!"**

" **And finally me, Koganei Shinji, 52!" Koganei said proudly.**

"That's the highest one yet!" Some people said. "So Koganei-san is the smartest amongst Seirin's regular." Takao said. "How unexpected!"

" **Everyone is amazing!" Kagami said. "Especially Koganei-senpai."**

" **Lastly, our coach, 2!"**

"Wow, that's impressive!" Almost everyone said with an impressed look.

"The only that I know with a higher placement is Sei-chan." Mibuchi said.

 **Kagami was shocked. "You, coach?" He said. "You are that smart?"**

"Do you want to get hit again!?" The other team asked Kagami.

" **That's right." Riko said proudly.**

" **Even though, our captain wears glasses, his rank was…" Kagami said.**

 **Hyuga was clearly offended by what Kagami said. "Don't go believing everyone in glasses is smart!" he yelled. "And getting above average is plenty good itself."**

" **Damn, who cares about grades if I can play basketball just fine." Kagami muttered.**

 **Riko put him in a wrestling hold. "Even idiot's can play basketball." She said. "But idiots don't win!"**

"There's the title of the episode." Hayama said.

 **Kagami had nothing to say to that.**

 **The screen changed to show Kise reading something. "Who cares about grades when I am good at basketball?" He sighed as he put down his book.**

"Want me to repeat what Seirin's coach just said?" Kasamatsu asked Kise. "No thanks." Kise said wearily.

" **They were kidding when they said they would drop me from the start line if I did bad, right? How serious can our team get?"**

 **The screen changed to Takao and Midorima. Takao as usual was pulling the rear cart.**

"Has there ever been a day you don't pedal the rear cart, Takao?" Kobori asked Takao. It took one whole minute before Takao answered "I can't remember."

" **How did you get so good at rock-paper-scissors, Shin-chan?" Takao asked Midorima.**

"Do you guys know why?" Takao asked Midorima's former teammates. "Nope." They said. "All we know is that ever since the beginning Mido-chin is good at rock-paper-scissors, the same way Kuro-chin sucks at it." Kuroko just sighed.

" **You are just really bad, Takao." Midorima said.**

" **Oh yeah, aren't the proficiency tests in two days?" Takao asked. "You studying?"**

" **Of course." Midorima said. "I only rely on myself."**

"Clearly." Everyone in the room said.

" **I'm pretty bad at Japanese History." Takao said. "Everyone is going by weird names like Fujiwara-no-whatever."**

Everyone laughed except for Hyuga who looked scandalized. He was about to go on a history rant but his teammates stopped him.

" **There's no need to understand anything if you memorize everything, fool." Midorima told him.**

"Actually, it has been scientifically proven that if you only memorize the content and not understanding the content is highly inefficient." Mayuzumi stated.

"For subjects like science and math." Akashi said. "History is all about memorization."

" **Then what parts do you think will show up?" Takao asked him. "Take a guess."**

" **Why must I?" Midorima asked.**

" **I saw today's Oha-asa." Takao said. "Doesn't Cancer have the best luck? Do me a favor."**

"You too!?" Takao's seniors asked him in shock. "Kinda mandatory when you are partnered with Shin-chan." Takao answered.

" **Don't beg for help." Midorima told him.**

"Rude." Almost everyone said.

 **The screen changed to Riko's house as Kagami and Kuroko entered her room. "Excuse us." Kuroko said politely.**

" **Is this coach's room?" Kagami asked. "It's cleaner and girlier than I expected.**

"I'm surprise the coach didn't attack Kagami for that comment." Furi said to Kawahara and Fukuda. "Probably because she had a more important thing to deal with." Fukuda said.

" **Sit your butt down, Bakagami." Riko told him.**

" **Bakagami…" Kagami said wearily.**

"Well, you are a Bakagami." Everyone told him. "Just like how Dai-chan is an Ahomine" Momoi said cheerfully.

"Why the hell are you guys insulting me every single time you insult Bakagami!?" Aomine yelled at everyone in exasperation.

" **Let's jump right into your training." Riko said holding a whipping stick.**

Some of the people looked absolutely terrified seeing the whipping stick.

" **There are 5 tests in the proficiency test." Riko continued. "I prepared a special team of people with different specialities."**

" **A special team?" Kagami said.**

" **First is Mitobe-kun with science." Riko said. "Kuroko-kun has Japanese."**

" **So she says." Kuroko said. "Please prepare yourself."**

" **Why you too?" Kagami said.**

"He had the best Japanese marks." Hyuga said with a shrug.

" **Izuki-kun has math."**

" **Does math bring out your wrath?" Izuki said "Good job, me."**

" **This guy's worthless!" Kagami said.**

"Considering the fact, how he had the best math marks." Hyuga said.

"Did he really?" The other school said with look that clearly said 'We don't believe you.'

"Why the hell are you looking like that!?" Izuki exclaimed.

" **Social studies with Hyuga-kun."**

" **I'll beat the Warring State period into your bones." Hyuga said.**

"Looks like we found you a History tutor, Takao." Midorima told him. 'A scary tutor.' Takao thought with a shudder.

" **Way too specific, and not even on the test!" Kagami said.**

" **English with Tsuchida-kun."**

" **You are going to teach me English as well!?" Kagami exclaimed.**

"Considering the fact you _failed_ …" The other schools said. "It's an absolute must." Akashi finished.

" **I got 95 on my exam." Tsuchida said.**

'The only dependable guy.' Kagami thought.

" **I'll be overseeing everything myself." Riko said as she and the others looked at Kagami with a menacing aura.**

"I'm starting to feel bad for Kagami." Hayama said with a little shudder. "We had Sei-chan for a tutor." Mibuchi reminded him. "Oh yeah." Hayama said with a shudder as he recalled those sessions. "Never mind."

" **We are the Teach Bakagami Special Team."**

" **What about you, Koganei-senpai." Kagami asked Koganei.**

" **I'm in charge of waking you up, if you fall asleep." Koganei said proudly.**

"Those are fun." Some people in the room said. "Not if you are the one waking up." A few people muttered underneath their breath.

" **Since Koganei-kun is pretty average in everything." Riko said. "A jack of all trades and master of none."**

"How long does she plan to call me that?" Koganei asked with crocodile tears. "Until you are good at something." Everyone else told him.

" **You are so mean." Koganei said.**

" **Arf" Nigou said.**

"Arf" Nigou barked back.

 **Kagami jumped in fright. "Nigou!" Kagami said. "Where did you come from!?"**

" **He'll be playing guard dog to make sure you don't run away." Hyuga said.**

 **Nigou walked up to Kagami and barked.**

 **Kagami shifted away from Nigou and waved his hand. "S-stop it!" He said. "Back off!"**

Some people snorted.

" **Here is your schedule from now until the test!" Riko said as she pointed to a chart on the wall.**

"That's one crazy schedule." Takao said. "Is there even time to sleep in that thing?" Wakamatsu asked with a blank look.

" **Where did that come from?" Kagami wondered out loud.**

" **You will literally will go sleepless until the tests." Kuroko said.**

"But don't people say it's bad to go sleepless the night before a big test?" Fukai asked.

"Desperate times call for desperate measure." Okamura said.

"Why does it sound like you are speaking from experience?" Fukai asked him with a blank look.

" **But isn't staying up supposed to be inefficient!?" Kagami said as he started to explain.**

"I can't believe I thought like a Bakagami." Fukai grimaced as his teammates laughed. "You too are calling me a Bakagami!" Kagami exclaimed. Fukai twitched. "First of all, I am older than you." He said. "Second of all, I call people as how I see them and right now, I am seeing you as an idiot. Lastly, respect your seniors!" Kagami flinched. "Yes...sorry." He said.

 **Riko immediately cut him off. "Ditch efficiency if you want to enter society!" She yelled. "You can't even spell it right in Kanji!"**

"Ouch!" Everyone said. "That's gotta sting." Mibuchi said.

" **You sure are through." Tsuchida said wearily.**

" **People won't die from two all-nighters in a row." Riko said. "Alright, start with math."**

" **Let's do this!" Izuki said. "Sin, cosine and tan, remember these formula's with your body."***

" **That's why I said this guy is useless!" Kagami said. He tried to get away but his seniors stopped him. "Let me go!"**

The other schools howled with laughter while Seirin (sans Kiyoshi) gave an exasperated sigh.

 **The next day Kuroko and Kagami were walking to school. Kuroko was testing Kagami's knowledge on science. Naturally...Kagami was failing.**

"He clearly said they have regenerative powers." Midorima said. "Which means they can grow back their detached limbs."

"There are creatures that can actually do that!?" The not-so-smart people exclaimed.

" **Who cares about planaria?" Kagami said in frustration.**

" **It'll be all over if you say that, Kagami-kun." Kuroko told him. "Calm down a little."**

" **They gang up on me all night and then finally release me only for me to go to school." Kagami complained.**

"Well yeah...you can't skip school." Kagami's seniors said in a matter of fact tone.

" **Are they trying to kill me?"**

" **We are still not done with Mitobe-senpai's subject." Kuroko told him.**

 **Kuroko stopped walking since he noticed the walking sign changed. But Kagami was too tired to notice. "Um…" Kuroko called out to Kagami but Kagami was to tired to hear him. A loud truck horn snapped Kagami out of his stupor. He quickly jumped out of the danger.**

"That was close." Kobori said with a sigh. He wasn't the only one who sighed. "Why didn't you say anything?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "I did but you didn't hear me." Kuroko told him. "Say it sooner!" Kagami exclaimed.

" **Holy crap!" Kagami said in fright.**

" **Are you okay?" Kuroko asked with concern.**

" **Seriously…" Kagami said. "Forget about the final round. Am I even gonna survive until the test?"**

" **I'm not sure." Kuroko said honestly.**

"Thanks for your confidence." Kagami said with a blank look as everyone else laughed.

" **Kagami-kun, go for it." Kuroko said holding out his two fists.**

" **Kuroko, you sure are having fun." Kagami said as he returned the fist bump.**

" **No way." Kuroko said. It was hard to tell if he was serious or not.**

 **Kagami sighed.**

Everyone snorted.

 **At around lunch, Kagami stretched after he slept through classes. "Kagami." Izuki called out to him. "We are going over prime factorization in the library today." Then he did a pun as soon as he noticed a lunch. "Oh man, good job me!"**

" **I kind of want to kill him." Kagami said.**

"Why!?" Izuki asked Kagami. Meanwhile, Hyuga sympathetically nodded his head and said. "I know how you feel Kagami." Everyone else just laughed.

" **He doesn't mean any harm." Kuroko said defending his senpai.**

"Thank you, Kuroko." Izuki said to Kuroko with a smile.

" **In fact, all our senpais believe they can't do without you."**

" **I know." Kagami said with a sigh. "I'm so dumb, that forget the Inter-High, I might not make it to the final league. With three of the Kiseki no Sedai left, is this really the time to mess around?"**

 **The screen changed to Aomine zooming past his opponents.**

Aomine shrugged with a smirk.

 **It showed Murasakibara blocking one of his opponent's shot.**

"Look Atsushi, it's you." Himuro told Murasakibara. On the outside, Murasakibara looked uninterested but Himuro could see an excited gleam in his eyes.

 **It showed Akashi observing his surroundings.**

"Oh look, it's Sei-chan." Mibuchi said. "Actually, it's the other me." Akashi said with a mysterious smile. "It's still Sei-chan." Mibuchi said with a shrug. ' _That was a lot sooner than I expected._ ' Bokushi said. 'So you are paying attention.' Akashi said to his other self with an amused smile. Bokushi said nothing.

" **Your strength is indispensable if we want to defeat them." Kuroko told Kagami.**

"Thanks." Kagami told Kuroko.

 **The screen changed to Midorima and Takao eating lunch on the rooftop. At that moment, Midorima's cellphone started to ring. When he picked it up, he was greeted by Kise's loud "Midorimacchi!" In fact, Kise was so loud that even Takao was shocked by it.**

"You are too loud!" Kasamatsu said as he hit Kise. "Are your ears alright?" Kimura asked Midorima. "They are fine." Midorima said pushing up his glasses. "They have been exposed to Kise's loud voice since middle school, so they are immune to it."

"So mean, Midorimacchi!" Kise wailed.

" **You are too loud." Midorima told Kise. "What do you want, Kise?"**

" **Kise…" Takao said. "You mean from Kaijou?"**

"Is there any other?" Kise said tilting his head.

" **You still got that thing?" Kise asked Midorima. "Lend it to me!"**

" **What thing?" Midorima asked.**

" **You know what thing!" Kise said. "Your secret weapon for tests."**

"He has a secret weapon for tests?" Almost everyone asked. Takao realizing that he might be in danger soon, left his spot and joined Seirin. "What did you do this time?" Kuroko asked Takao. "You'll see." Takao said with a mischievous smile.

" **What do you all want from me?" Midorima said. "Lucky items only help those who help themselves. They won't save those who depend on others."**

" **You are so sold." Kise told Midorima. Before he could say anything else, Midorima hung up. "Hey, Midorimacchi!?" Kise said in shock. "Aw man, I'm in trouble. Oh yeah, pretty sure Kurokocchi had one as well."**

 **He called Kuroko. As soon as Kuroko saw the name, he cancelled the call.**

" **Who was it?" Kagami asked.**

" **Wrong number." Kuroko said.**

"So mean, Kurokocchi!" Kise wailed as everyone else howled in laughter. "I should have done that." Midorima muttered.

" **He totally cut my call off." Kise said with tears in his eyes. "You are making me cry, Kurokocchi."**

" **Kagami-kun." Kuroko called out to Kagami who was struggling to study.**

" **Huh?"**

" **This is a last resort." Kuroko said. "Use this if all else fail." Kuroko gave him the pencil.**

"You gave him my pencil!?" Midorima yelled at Kuroko. "Why would you do that!?"

"Desperate times calls for desperate measures." Kuroko told him.

"Even so!" Midorima said. "The fact that you gave it to him of all people!"

"Hey, I wasn't any more please with the fact that I had to use your goddamn pencil!" Kagami said.

"You still used it, didn't you?" Midorima told him. Kagami had nothing to repute that.

" **What is this?" Kagami said. "There are numbers or something."**

" **Midorima-kun gave it to me in middle school." Kuroko said.**

"You still have it, Tetsu-kun!" Momoi said gleefully. Kuroko smiled at her. "Yes." He said. "After all, it is token from a very memorable day."*

"It certainly was a very fun day to remember." Kise said with a smile. "I guess." Midorima said while trying to hid his nostalgic smile. Aomine and Murasakibara also had nostalgic smiles on their face. "What day?" Everyone else asked. "Oh that's right, Akashicchi wasn't with us that day." Kise said. "I'm sorry, Akashi-kun." Kuroko said. "But you will have to wait and see." Akashi wasn't happy with the answer but he relented.

" **The pencil of the lazy god: rolly pencil."**

"I'm surprised you still remember the name." Midorima said. "How much help can a pencil be?" Those that didn't know the pencil's power said.

" **Like hell I need this!" Kagami said. He tossed the pencil, which bounced all around before it Kagami straight into the center of his forehead.**

" **What the hell!?" Kagami cried out in agony.**

"Disrespect lucky items and it will come back to haunt you." Midorima said casually while everyone else (except Kagami) laughed.

" **It attacks non-believers." Kuroko told him.**

This caused everyone to laugh even harder.

 **Back in Shutoku, Midorima was looking at his own pencil. "So you do have a secret weapon." Takao said. "Hand it over if it works that well."**

Midorima glared at Takao who was still sitting with Seirin. "Takao-kun...could it be…?" Before Kuroko could say anything, Takao silenced. "No spoilers." He said with a cheeky grin.

" **I refuse." Midorima said. "It is my motto to prepare for each and every possibility."**

 **Back at Riko's apartment. Hyuga was telling Kagami off for getting a history question wrong.**

'I don't see how figures are going to help here.' Everyone except for Seirin thought.

" **Come on, Koganei-kun." Riko said to a sleeping Koganei. "There is no point in watching him if you fall asleep."**

"It was 1'o clock in the morning!" Koganei said. "You can't blame me from falling asleep after two nights of doing nothing but watching Kagami."

" **I'm also at my limit." Kuroko said. The screen showed the rest of Seirin members are also sleeping.**

" **I guess it's pretty late." Riko said. "You must be hungry. I'll go make some food."**

 **The idea of Riko's cooking immediately made everyone wake up.**

"Is her cooking that bad?" Everyone asked Seirin. "She and Momoi-san have the same cooking level." Kuroko told them. It was the most polite thing he could think of. Those that have experience Momoi's cooking, immediately paled. Everyone else was confused.

" **No, it's alright." Hyuga said. "I'll head over to the convenience store and get something. And...Nigou wants to go out too, so perfect timing."**

"Quick thinking Hyuga." His teammates said.

" **Kagami, study Japanese." Hyuga said.**

" **Ok." Kagami said sleepily.**

" **Let's go, Nigou." Hyuga said.**

" **Arf" Nigou said.**

Nigou had fallen asleep, so he didn't respond.

" **What's with him?" Riko said.**

 **After some time, Izuki opened the curtains. "It's already morning." Izuki said. "We have three hours until the tests."**

" **Yeah." Riko said. "I wanted him to try some of last years problem."**

" **How is it?" Izuki asked.**

" **Not good." Riko said. "We still have one more subject and his Japanese hasn't improved at all."**

" **I'm sorry." Kuroko said. "But I can't do much anymore."**

" **Alright, let's sacrifice Japanese." Riko said.**

"All that hard work…" Kuroko said woefully.

" **All the tests are multiple choice with four answers." Riko said. "You should be able to get 25% if you choose randomly."**

" **I'm back with snacks." Hyuga said. "Where is Kagami?"**

" **Didn't he say he was going to the bathroom?" Riko said.**

" **I passed by and I didn't see any lights on." Hyuga said.**

Hyuga hit Kagami on the head. "That is for lying to us." Kagami rubbed his head. "Sorry."

" **Wait does that mean…?" Tsuchida said.  
"He fled!?" Seirin yelled out in horror. **

"Where did he go?" Moriyama asked. "Guess." Seirin said. "Because your first guess is probably the right one." Hyuga said. Wakamatsu blinked. "Don't tell me…" He said. "A basketball court!?"

"Yep." Seirin replied.

 **Amongst the commotion Koganei woke up. "Is it my time to shine?" He asked.**

Everyone gave Koganei a blank look.

" **You're the reason why this happened!" Riko told him.**

" **Alright, let's go Nigou." Koganei said. "Lead us to Kagami."**

" **Arf."**

" **All hands move out." Koganei said. Everyone quickly left the room.**

" **Well aren't you having fun…" Riko sighed.**

Seirin shrugged while some people snorted.

 **Seirin followed Nigou's lead which lead to...a street basketball court.**

" **Why that little…" Hyuga said. "How many times do we have to tell him, he won't be able to play if he fails his tests."**

" **I guess he is a Bakagami till the end…" Riko said.**

" **No, wait a second." Kuroko said. "He is saying something."**

 **Turns out Kagami was studying while playing basketball.**

 **Kagami turned and noticed his teammates. "What the heck are you doing?" Hyuga asked. Meanwhile, Nigou went up to the basketball and started playing with it.**

"Your dog really loves basketball." Takao told Kuroko. Kuroko gave a fond smile.

" **Is that your own method of studying, Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asked.**

" **I thought I would remember better, if I played basketball." Kagami said.**

" **Alright then, it's last minute cramming." Koganei said. "Let's do this!"**

"Is it really going to help?" Akashi asked

" **Nice." Kagami said.**

" **Kagami-kun, your legs!" Riko said.**

" **Didn't you get injured during the match against Shutoku!?" Hyuga yelled at him.**

" **I forgot." Kagami said.**

"How can someone forget they are inured?" Wei Lui asked. "It's Taiga." Himuro told his teammate.

" **Change of plans." Kagami said. "I'll just move the ball around my body."**

 **Finally after the last minute study session, it was time for the test. 'The training was useless.' Kagami thought. He read one the question and thought. 'How the hell should I know!? If we knew how other people felt, we wouldn't have wars!"**

Everyone laughed. "A surprisingly deep thought from a very dumb moment." Akashi said with a amused smile.

 **Meanwhile in Shutoku, Midorima was looking over his answers. 'Normally, the answer is 3, but the last five answers were also 3.'**

"Apparently, teachers do that when they are bored and want to mess with the students." Himuro said. 'Evil teachers.' Almost everyone thought.

' **This is too much of a coincidence.' Midorima opened his pencil case to get his lucky pencil to check his answers. Instead he found a note written by Takao saying he borrowed Midorima's pencil for a bit. 'Takao!' Midorima mentally raged.**

Everyone howled in laughter except for Midorima. "That's almost as funny as Kurokocchi stealing Midorimacchi's lucky item." Kise said with laughter. "You stole Shin-chan's lucky item!?" Takao asked Kuroko as him and his seniors looked at Kuroko in amazement. "It's a long story." Kuroko said.*

 **The screen changed to Seirin. "Kagami-kun, did you…?" Kuroko asked**

" **Shut up!" Kagami said. Turns out, he used the pencil for every last question.**

 **The next day, everyone in Serin's basketball club ran to Kuroko's classroom.**

" **Kagami, how did you do in the test?" Hyuga asked.**

 **Kagami grimly showed his paper. Turns out he placed 90 out 308!**

Everyone that didn't know, had their jaws wide opened his shock. "How!?" They all asked. "Pencil." Kuroko said. "Pencil!?" Miyaji said. "As in Midorima's pencil!?"

 **Everyone was naturally shocked. "No way!" Riko said. "How!?"**

" **Forget the bottom, he's at the top." Izuki said.**

" **98 in Japanese!?" Koganei said.**

" **How did you do that?" Tsuchida asked.**

" **I just rolled a pencil." Kagami said.**

" **What is this?" Tsuchida asked**

" **It's Midorima-kun's special pencil." Kuroko said.**

" **You got 98 with this!?" Tsuchida said. "Midorima's scary!"**

Everyone agreed with Tsuchida. "Where the hell did you get that?" Otsubo asked Midorima. "I made it." Midorima said. "You...what!?" Some people asked. "I made it." Midorima said again. 'What a scary dude!' Almost everyone thought.

 **Nonetheless, everyone was happy with result...except for two people. Hyuga was devastated because his rank was lower than Kagami while Kagami was devastated because he had to rely on Midorima.**

Everyone had a blank look on their face while both Kagami and Hyuga were in despair from the memory.

" **What is wrong with you all?" Riko asked.**

" **Leave them be." Kuroko said. "Even they have pride as men."**

" **Boys are such a pain." Riko said.**

Momoi agreed while the boys huffed.

 **The episode ended with both boys yelling in despair.**

This caused almost everyone to laugh.

 **The screen went black. It turned back on with a sign that said** _ **Character Segment**.**_

"What?" Everyone asked. "Apparently, this segment will show on of our profiles and some trivia about us." Momoi said. Everyone blinked. "Why!?" They asked. Momoi shrugged. "Aren't you curious in learning things about your opponent/ teammate that you didn't know" She asked. Truth be told, everyone was curious. "Wonder who is first?" Takao said.

 **It showed a picture of Kuroko. Beside his picture, was his basic profile:**

"Why am I not surprised?" Kuroko said with a sigh.

 **Name: Kuroko Tetsuya**

 **Age: 16**

 **Birthday: January 31st, Aquarius**

"Whose rank is 9, according to Oha-asa." Midorima said. "Lucky item is a sports towel."

 **Height: 168 cm**

 **Weight: 57 kgs**

"How are you 57 kg, with the amount of food you eat?" Kagami asked Kuroko. Kuroko shrugged.

 **Blood type: A**

"Does that mean Shin-chan is a B?" Takao asked. "Since you said your blood types don't match."

"Yes." Midorima answer.

 **Best subject: History and Geography**

"Help me out with History." Takao asked Kuroko.

 **Member of the library committee**

 **Type of girl is a gentle person.**

Momoi was highly interested in this.

 **Favorite food: Vanilla milkshake**

"No surprise." Everyone said.

 **Favorite movie: Stand by me**

"Why that one?" Izuki asked. "The story intrigued me." Kuroko said.

 **Alternative job: Kindergarten teacher.**

 **Hobbies: reading and human observation**

"So you don't just observe people because of basketball." Furihata said.

 **Speciality: Simple magic tricks**

"Magic tricks?" Everyone asked. "I picked a few up while learning misdirection." Kuroko said. "Could you show us some?" Kise asked. "Later." Kuroko said.

 **He is skilled in basic handicrafts.**

"That's true." Aomine said. "The card you made on my birthday was really nice."

 **He dislikes cola because he cannot drink carbonated drinks.**

"They feel funny." Kuroko said.

 **He inherited his mother's looks and lack of presence while his personality comes from his father.**

"You're mother has a lack of presence?" Midorima asked. Kuroko nodded.

*Light novel reference

**All info is cannon but I will not add every single information. Now who do you want in the next character segment? Should we start if off with Seirin or should we start with the Kiseki no Sedai? I'll create a poll for you to vote in.

Finally done! You might have noticed a bit of rushing towards the end, for that I apologize. It took me so long because school started and I have midterms.


	22. Chapter 22

Hi Everyone! Hope you enjoyed the OVA. Now it's time to return to the anime. Here comes the angst (almost). Anyway, I hope you enjoy the story.

Episode 16

Since the OVA was the end of their quota everyone had to wait till the next day to watch the next few episodes. The next day, everyone patiently waiting for the episode to star. While the OVA was fun to watch, they wanted to see the rest of the match.

 **The episode started with the opening. The episode continued with a preview of the last few episodes. The title of the episode is "Let's go". The episode showed the scoreboard. With six minutes into the first quarter, Touou was leading with a score of 8-4. A ball was shot through the air for the basket but it missed. Wakamatsu got the rebound.**

" **Alright." He said. "Take this!" He passed the ball to Imayoshi using a long pass!**

 **Imayoshi got the ball. "What are you going to say this time?" He said going for the basket.**

" **I'll stop you." Izuki said. He jumped to stop the shot. But Imayoshi was able to make the basket using a double clutch. The audience cheered loudly at the play.**

" **When you heard Aomine will be late, I bet you thought you could score as many points as you can." Imayoshi said. "Sorry, I guess I misspoke. We're only an opening act compared to Aomine. "**

' **They are strong!' Riko thought. 'I didn't think they would be this strong. If they are this strong without Aomine, we are screwed.'**

"Thank god for the training camp." Izuki whispered to Hyuga.

" **I thought so." Furihata said as he looked at a piece of paper.**

" **What is it, Furihata?"**

" **Touou's preliminary tournament score."**

" **Amazing." Fukuda said. "They are all 100 point games."**

" **Yes. They are the opposite of Seiho." Riko said. "An offensive team."**

"They are a pain." Murasakibara said. "All they do is attack and I never get any time to relax."

"That's funny. I think the same thing about your team's style of play." Aomine told Murasakibara. "How the hell can you just sit back and defend?"

 **At the cheer of the crowds, Serin went back to watching the game. "Sorry." Sakurai said as he went for a three pointer.**

' **Dammit, I can't block him.' Hyuga thought. 'He's shooting while jumping! And if you are going to apologize, don't shoot in the first place.'**

"Sorry!" Sakurai said while everyone else (especially Touou) laughed.

' **These guys…' Kagami thought as he tried to get close to the hoop but was blocked by Susa.**

 **The ball bounced off the rink. "Ah, I'm sorry." Sakurai apologized but Wakamatsu got the rebound and put it into the basket.**

' **Their care for their teammates is minimal and there is no coordination at all.' Kagami observed.**

"You know...the more episodes I watch, the more I can't help but notice that Kagami-kun is more observant than he looks." Kuroko said. "I know right!" His teammates except Kagami exclaimed. "Why the hell am I being insulted at least once for every episode we watch!?" Kagami asked with an annoyed expression while the other schools snorted.

' **Their offense and defense are all one-on-one. You get the ball yourself and score yourself. They keep coming at us with individual skills.'**

"We are a team that utilizes on individual skills rather than teamwork." Imayoshi said. "We know." The other team said. "That would definitely explain why Daiki went there." Akashi said. "Yeah, Aominecchi is one selfish guy." Kise said. This resulted in him getting hit on the head by Aomine. "It's true!" Kise said as he clutched his head in pain.

" **I see." Izuki said. "I expected some of this, but that's your style."**

" **That's right." Imayoshi said. "Our team gathered athletes from across the country. The more skilled a player is the stronger his sense of self. We've been trying all sorts of things in the last few years though. More than holding hands and playing nice, this way works best. We are both offensive teams. This should be interesting."**

" **I don't know how interesting it will be." Izuki said. "I'm not even sure we are the same type. Our style is full team play." Izuki passed Imayoshi thanks to Kagami acting as a screen. After that, he pretended to shoot but instead passed the ball to Mitobe. Mitobe quickly passed the ball to Hyuga.**

" **Forget one-on-ones." Hyuga said. He went for a shoot and the ball went in. "I don't plan on losing this game. Tell your captain, you apologetic mushroom."**

Some people snorted. Sakurai's eyebrow twitched slightly.

" **What? Sorry!" Sakurai said. A background full of mushrooms surrounded him. 'I didn't say anything!' He thought. 'And what's an apologetic mushroom?'**

Susa sympathetically pat Sakurai in the shoulder while everyone else chuckled. "That's actually a good nickname for Ryo." Aomine casually said. "Sorry!" Sakurai said.

 **Wakamatsu had the ball and passed it to Imayoshi. Imayoshi chuckled. "I don't hear what you said but I understood something…" Before he could finish, Wakamatsu made a dash. "...from your play." Imayoshi said as he made a long pass to Wakamatsu. "Between our individual style and your coordinated style, let's see whose style is better."**

" **I called it team play." Izuki said. "But most people forget."**

 **Wakamatsu looked beside and noticed Kuroko was running alongside him.**

"That was a surprise." Wakamatsu said. "When did you start running?" Takao asked since Kuroko was not the fastest runner. "As soon as Imayoshi-san had the ball." Kuroko answered.

' **He's fast.' Wakamatsu thought. 'No, wait...he started fast but...where did this guy come from anyway?'**

 **Kuroko jumped to get the ball but…**

"He's too low!" Some people said. "You shouldn't do things you are not used to." Midorima told him. "What are you talking about?" Kuroko said. "I had everything under control." Everyone gave him a blank look. 'Rrrriiiiggghhhtt.' They all thought.

" **He's too low!" Riko yelled.**

" **Don't try things you are not used to, idiot!" Kagami said as he jumped and caught the ball.**

' **So high!' Wakamatsu thought. 'Too high! He's way too high! What nationality are you?'**

"I'm Japanese." Kagami said blankly while everyone else chuckled in agreement with Wakamatsu.

 **Kagami passed the ball to Izuki. "Nice Kagami." Izuki said. "You too, Kuroko!"**

" **What was that sad jump?" Kagami asked Kuroko. "If you can't get it, don't jump!"**

"I got it." Kuroko said with a pout. "No you didn't!" Kagami told him. "This thing clearly shows that you didn't, so stop being so stubborn about it."

" **I got it." Kuroko said.**

" **Liar!" Kagami said.**

" **This is like you in the first place." Kagami said. "This isn't overlapping with your experience in middle school, is it? We are playing against Touou right now. Are you asleep?"**

"How the hell do you understand Kuroko so well when you are so obtuse when it comes to other people feelings?" Hyuga asked Kagami. "I mean you even made a girl cry."

"I don't know." Kagami said with a shrug. Everyone else (except Seirin and Momoi) gave Kagami a disappointed look. "You made a girl cry?" They asked him. "It wasn't intentional!" Kagami exclaimed with a red face. Everyone kept on giving him a disappointed face.

" **But I got it." Kuroko said.**

" **Liar." Kagami said. This time he was clearly annoyed with Kuroko.**

"You and your stubbornness." Kagami sighed. "You guys weren't kidding about his stubbornness." Takao said to the Kiseki no Sedai with a blank look. The Kiseki no Sedai snorted while everyone else had the same face as Takao.

" **Those little shits have really done it now!" Wakamatsu said in frustration. Sakurai sighed at his senpais temper.**

' **Well but…' Imayoshi thought. 'It's just like he said.'**

 **The scene changed to Kise. "Oh?" He said. "I'm late again and they are losing again." He looked over and noticed a certain familiar green-head.**

"You are such a tsundere." Takao said to Midorima as he laughed. Midorima glared at him. "If you are coming to a game, then come to a game." Miyaji told him. "Stop making things so complicated!"

 **For some reason, Midorima was wearing sunglasses. "Midorimacchi." Kise called out to him.**

" **Kise?" Midorima said in surprise. In his hand was a jack in a box. "How did you know it was me?"**

"How could he not?" Everyone asked him. "You stick out like a sore thumb thanks to your hair." Mayuzumi said. "In fact, every last one of you Teikou people stand out because of your hair." The Teikou alumni huffed while everyone else agreed with Mayuzumi. "I don't." Kuroko said. "That's because of your natural lack of presence." Mayuzumi told him. "Well if you ask me, I don't see anything wrong with sticking out." Mibuchi said. "I love to show off."

'That's for certain.' His teammates and Kiyoshi thought.

" **What are you, stupid?" Kise said to him.**

Everyone except Midorima laughed. "Looks like Tetsu's rubbing off on you, Kise." Aomine said laughing.

" **Those sunglasses are embarrassing. Please take them off."**

"He's right." Everyone said. "KIse's sense of fashion is pretty good." Kobori said. "Probably because he's a model." Moriyama said.

"Speaking of fashion…" Mibuchi said. "Wanna be shopping buddies with me, Kise?"

"Sure, Mibuchi-san." Kise said happily. "No need for formalities." Mibuchi said. "You are a friend of Sei-chan and any friend of Sei-chan is a friend of mine."

" **What?" Midorima said.**

" **What with that box?" Kise said.**

"It's obviously his lucky item." Those that know Midorima said. "That was definitely a stupid question." Kise said.

" **It's today's lucky item, of course." Midorima said.**

 **Kise blinked twice and sighed. "Is that it?" Kise said. "You told everyone you didn't want to see the game, but you came anyway?"**

"Yep." Takao said with a big smile.

" **Don't say that." Midorima said. "I just happened to be in the area!"**

"That's funny." Aomine said. "I thought Midorima lived far from that area."

"He does." Midorima's former teammates and Takao said simultaneously.

" **Your house isn't anywhere near here." Kise said. Midorima had nothing to say to that.**

This caused everyone to chuckle.

" **So how's the game?" Kise asked.**

" **Nothing special." Midorima said as he took off his sunglasses and put on his regular glasses. "This is ridiculous. Aomine doesn't seem to be here, but they can barely keep up."**

" **Aominecchi isn't here?" Kise said. "Well those two just scored. They're just getting started."**

" **Have you forgotten, Kise?" Midorima asked. "Touou has Momoi as well. She is not just a manager. She helped us out a lot during middle school."**

" **Momocchi, huh?" Kise said. "She's known Aominecchi since she was little, right?"**

"Speaking of which…" Kuroko said. "I've been meaning to ask when you two first meet?" He turned to Momoi and Aomine. "We met at the age of 5 at a street basketball court." Momoi said. "Is that how we met?" Aomine asked. "I don't really remember." As a result, he got hit on the head by Momoi clipboard. "Ow." Aomine said.

 **Kise frowned as he remembered something. "Didn't she like Kurokocchi?" Kise asked. "What if she can't play seriously against him?"**

"That won't happen." Momoi said. "I am even more serious because it's Tetsu-kun. After all, that's how Tetsu-kun wants his opponents to play."

"That's right." Kuroko said with a slight smile. This caused Momoi to become flustered. 'So smooth.' The other boys thought.

" **Is that right?" Midorima asked.**

" **What!?" Kise said in shock. "You didn't know!?"**

"Are you freaking kidding me!?" Aomine exclaimed. "Everyone in the team aside for Murasakibara knew and that's because it's Murasakibara!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Murasakibara asked with a frown.

"It means that aside from sweets you don't care about anything else in the world." Aomine told him. Murasakibara seriously thought about it and honestly said. "Yeah, you're right."

'He actually admits it!' Murasakibara's current teammates thought.

" **It was obvious! She was all over him everyday!"**

"Exactly!" Aomine said. "You would have to be rock to not know something like that."

"Never thought I would see the day I agree with Aomine." Wakamatsu whispered to the rest of the Touou team. The team hummed in agreement.

 **The screen changed to a flashback. It showed that Momoi would try to be near Kuroko whenever she could. "If you didn't know after seeing that, you must be a monkey!" Kise told Midorima.**

Everyone (sans Midorima) laughed. "Even though it is rare, Ryouta can say something that I can agree with." Akashi said with an amused smile. 'I was just insulted, right?' Kise thought.

" **What!?" Midorima said. He was clearly offended. "What do you mean, a monkey?" He calmed down and said. "Well, if that's the case, it's all the more then."**

" **Huh?"**

" **She would never wish for Kuroko to slack off in a game." Midorima said. "Her role may be different, but her attitude towards basketball is no different from an athlete's."**

"Thank you Midorin!" Momoi happily said to Midorima. Midorima looked away. "It's nothing to thank me for." Midorima said. "I was just simply stating a fact."

" **She would never intentionally lose a basketball game."**

" **That's your ex-girlfriend everyone's been talking about?" Kagami said to Kuroko as he looked at Momoi. "She's cute."**

"Thank you for the compliment, Kagamin." Momoi said. "But I'm not Tetsu-kun's ex-girlfriend." She said the last bit with a pout. "I am his _girlfriend_."

" **Is that so?" Kuroko said.**

" **Hey, there's something annoying about the way you said that." Kagami told him.**

" **Well, you're right." Kuroko said.**

Momoi blushed.

" **What?"**

" **As long as she's not playing game."**

"Since we are talking about Momoi, I have to ask you something." Hyuga said to Kuroko. "Yes?" Kuroko said. "Why is it that you never told us what Momoi can do, as soon as we met her?" Hyuga asked. Kuroko was silent for a while before he honestly said. "You didn't ask."

After a moment of silence, you can hear the loud "Are you kidding me!?" from Kuroko's teammates outside of the building. "Plus I figured you already knew considering how she introduced herself and being a manager." Kuroko added. His teammates continued to look at Kuroko in shock.

Everyone else were either trying not to laugh or laughing like no tomorrow.

" **I can see how they defeated a couple of kings." Touou's coach Harasawa said as he twirled a strand of his hair.**

" **Coach, should we take a time out?" Momoi asked.**

" **No, it's fine." Harasawa said. "They are still making corrections after seeing the real thing. Did you already hand those out?"**

" **Yes." Momoi said. "They already know everything."**

 **The scene changed back to the game. Izuki blocked one of Sakurai's shot. Izuki avoided his mark and passed the ball to Kagami. 'These guys are guarding deep.' Kagami thought. 'They are abandoning the outside so we can't get through.' As a result, Kagami jumped "How naive!" He said.**

" **A three?" Kise said in surprise. "No..."**

 **Kagami dodged his mark and ran towards the ball. "That's…" Kise said.**

" **A one-man alley oop!" Midorima said as he remembered his past experience.**

" **I know." Momoi said. "I thought you might try that." As Kagami was running, Susa blocked Kagami from moving.**

'Data is such an annoying thing!" Seirin thought.

" **Boys are so simple." Momoi said.**

"Oi!" The boys exclaimed. "Well you are." Momoi said. "Except for Tetsu-kun and Akashi-kun. I can never tell what those two are thinking."

 **The ball jumped off the hoop and became Touou's ball. 'Those movements…' Kagami thought. 'They've faced this before!'**

"We didn't." Imayoshi said. "That would have shocked us..." Wakamatsu said. "...Hadn't it been for Momoi's data."

' **And they know Kagami's low outside shooting range!' Hyuga thought.**

"You know...we really need to improve that outside shooting range of yours." Hyuga told Kagami.

' **In other words…'**

" **We must have researched by that girl." Riko said looking at Momoi. "Momoi is an information gathering specialist. In other words, a spy."**

"How rude." Momoi said. "I'm not a spy. I'm a researcher."

 **The ball was passed to Mitobe. 'Mitobe Rinnosuke-san.' Momoi thought. 'A hard worker who doesn't take risks. When his opponents is taller than him…'**

' **It's a hook shot!' Wakamatsu thought. 'I already know!' He pushed the ball away from Mitobe's hand.**

Mitobe sighed. "Yeah, they really did get you good." Koganei said. 'How the hell did you get that from a sigh?' Everyone else thought.

' **They know!' Izuki thought.**

" **This isn't good, is it?" Kawahara asked Riko. "We have to do something."**

" **There's no need!" Riko said confidently. "We'll keep playing like this. No matter how accurate the information, it's from the past. Humans grow. Don't act like you understand when you don't even realize that!"**

 **The ball went to Hyuga. 'Hyuga Junpei-san.' Momoi thought. 'Not a fast player. Goes for three after breaking free from his mark with screens and cuts instead of charging in. However…'**

 **Hyuga gets ready to make his shots while Sakurai gets ready to block him. 'Alright. They got him.' Izuki thought triumphantly. 'Hyuga is a pure shooter. But in modern basketball, a player who can only shoot from the outside isn't good enough. That's why he's been practicing to improve his dribbling skills ever since the game against Shutoku.'**

'Hate to admit it but I did get some inspiration from Midorima.' Hyuga thought.

' **He's still not fast, but not only is it a new pattern, but today's plays are all threes without any fakes.' Kagami thought.**

' **They think I'm going to shoot.' Hyuga thought. 'I can make it!'**

" **I know." Momoi said with a knowing smile. "I thought you might do that." As a result, Sakurai was ready for Hyuga when he went to dribble inside.**

" **What?" Kagami said in shock.**

' **They haven't seen this pattern before!' Izuki thought in shock. 'They shouldn't have this data!'**

" **Normally, when confronted with a play missing from their data, a person cannot handle it." Midorima told said. "However, Momoi analyzes the data she collects and even reads how her opponent will grow."**

"You know, a person really has to appreciate the convenient timing of these explanation." Fukai said.

' **Their height, weight, strengths, weakness, personality, habits… I gather, analyze, interpret and narrow the results of all of it.' Momoi thought. 'The last trick is a woman's intuition.' In the background, it showed Hyuga's data file.**

"That's my data!" Momoi exclaimed. "How did they get a hold of my data?"

'Who the hell made this!?' Everyone thought. 

"Height, weight, strengths, weakness, personality, habits and woman's intuition." Mayuzumi repeated "That sounds a lot like a…"

"Stalker?" Aomine asked interrupting him. Momoi hit Aomine with a clipboard as hard as she could. "Ow." Aomine said rubbing his head. "I was going to say a really annoying fangirl." Mayuzumi said "But that works as well."

" **Bring it back, Hyuga!" Izuki exclaimed. Hyuga passed the ball to Izuk who caught it.**

' **Izuki Shun-san.' Momoi thought. 'Possess the exceptional spatial awareness ability "eagle eye". The screen showed various ways Momoi was able to block Izuki's ability.**

' **It's no use.' Izuki thought. 'They know everything we'll do. We can't break through!'**

' **But because he sees so much, he sometimes becomes unable to act.' Momoi thought.**

 **Riko gave a confident smile. "You're naive, girl."**

Momoi frowned.

 **Izuki passed the ball to Hyuga. Sakurai was ready for him. "It's the same as before." Koganei said. "They can't get through."**

" **It's alright." Riko said. "They don't know what's coming next!" Sakurai gasped because all of a sudden he bumped into Kuroko. This allowed Hyuga to pass through.**

 **Momoi gasped. 'When did they set up that screen?' Sakurai thought.**

" **Not even with a woman's intuition." Riko said. Hyuga continued to move forward. Susa came to stop him but Hyuga passed the ball to Kagami. Kagami took the ball and dunked it in.**

" **Alright, nice, Kagami!" Hyuga said.**

" **Good work as usual, Kuroko!" Izuki told Kuroko as the two high-fived.**

' **Sheesh! I can never read him.' Momoi thought.**

"So of all the guys in the planet she could read, she can't read the one guy she likes?" Mayuzumi asked. "How tragic."

" **Damn, this isn't going to be easy." Harasawa said.**

" **It's alright. I thought this might happen." Momoi told him. She smiled. 'But that's why I love Tetsu-kun.' She thought.**

'So she likes unpredictable guys?' Everyone thought. 'Well...that makes sense.'

 **The first quarter ended with the score of 25-21 in Touou's favour.**

" **A four point difference." Imayoshi said. "Well, it figures."**

" **We can still beat them with Momoi's data." Wakamatsu said. "We don't need Aomine!"**

" **No he'll play." Harasawa said. "Don't make me tell you something as obvious as don't underestimate your opponents.**

" **Besides, starting in the second quarter, they will probably come at us with those two." Momoi said.**

" **Yes, without a doubt." Harasawa said.**

"It was the best option we had even though it's obvious." Izuki said.

" **The more data you have the more accurate it is." Riko said. "She's been researching the second years for a whole extra year. However there is considerably less information on you two. Kuroko-kun is hard to predict and Kagami-kun is still developing."**

" **Okay, it's up to you!" Hyuga told Kuroko and Kagami.**

 **It was time to start the second quarter. "Give them hell!" Riko said.**

 **The ball was in Izuki's hand. 'Good!' Izuki thought once he saw that both Kagami and Kuroko were ready. 'Go for it!'**

 **He passed the ball to Kuroko. 'Already?' Imayoshi thought confidently. 'It's just like Momoi said.'**

 **Kuroko did an ignite pass to Kagami. Kagami jumped for the ball while Susa jumped to block. 'It's true that there is relatively little data on these two!' Susa thought.**

' **But this didn't work in Shutoku's game.' Wakamatsu thought as he also went for the ball. 'Besides, how dare a kid who just graduated from middle school…' He jumped. "...dunk all over the place!" He said.**

"I don't see what my age has to do with dunking." Kagami said with a huff. "He's just jealous." Aomine said with a shrug. Wakamatsu glared at them both.

 **Even though there were two blockers, Wakamatsu and Susa were already falling. 'How long are you planning to stay up there?' Wakamatsu thought as he noticed that Kagami was still in the air despite jumping first. Kagami took the ball and dunked it over them. 'This jump...the real thing is ridiculous!'**

"They are a pain." Everyone who had a ball dunked over them by Kagami said. Kagami just confidently smiled.

' **We can't stop him even if we know it's coming.' Imayoshi thought. He seemed to have resigned to the fact. "Oh well." He said.**

 **As soon as he landed, Kagami felt a sudden sting of pain on his legs. "All this crap about data is a pain in the ass." He said. "I'll kick it all to the curb and jump!" His teammates cheered Kagami on.**

 **Harasawa was observing Kagami. "No this isn't good." He said. "Even if you are young you shouldn't recklessly destroy your body!"**

"He noticed!" Kagami exclaimed. "He's a professional coach." Kuroko said. "It's his job to notice."

" **This is an emergency!" Riko said. "Koganei-kun get in position as soon as possible."**

 **Seirin called for a member change. "Kagami, change!" Koganei said.**

" **Huh?" Kagami said in confusion. "Why me? We are just getting started."**

" **Just go back!" Koganei said. "The coach noticed." Everyone in the audience was surprised by the member change.**

"The member change was a wise move because she _is_ a proper coach." Akashi said.

" **Your injured legs haven't fully healed yet, have they?" Riko asked Kagami. Everyone in the bench looked at Kagami in shock.**

" **I'm fine." Kagami insisted stubbornly.**

" **You're not sick and there is nothing wrong with you, so I won't tell you not to play." Riko said. "I'm going to tape your legs. Take off your shoes."**

' **Damn it!' Kagami thought. 'I was just getting started!'**

 **Meanwhile, the game resumed without Kagami. Hyuga had the ball and went for a shot. 'Dammit, I moved!' Hyuga thought. The ball bounced of the rim. Wakamatsu got the rebound and passed it to Imayoshi.**

' **This isn't good…' Izuki thought. 'No. 7 is 190 cm and No. 6 is a 193 cm. Without Kagami, our inside has an overwhelming disadvantage.'**

"It was a good advantage." Imayoshi said looking at Kiyoshi. "Unfortunately, we lost that advantage in the Winter Cup thanks to a certain someone."

"Sorry." Kiyoshi said. "Why the hell are you apologizing?" Hyuuga yelled at him. "I felt like it." Kiyoshi said with a shrug. "Honestly…" Hyuga said as he face-palmed. "Where the hell is the "Iron" in "Iron Heart"?" Kiyoshi grimaced.

" **Seirin scores around Kuroko, but the movements of the four second years are known thanks to Momoi." Midorima said. "The hole left by Kagami is huge."**

" **The score gap is getting wider." Kise said. "This isn't good."**

" **Please, hang in there." Kagami said.**

" **Calm down, Kagami." Tsuchida told him. "Have a little faith in everyone!"**

" **I know." Kagami said. "We'll beat Touou with teamwork."**

"Looks like he learned his lesson from our match." Otsubo said. "After a punch like that you would have to be an idiot if you didn't learn your lesson." Miyaji said. 

" **That should do it." Riko said after she finished tapping Kagami's leg. "This should get you through the game."**

" **Alright." Kagami said getting up from the bench. "Thank you."**

" **I'm sorry." Riko said. Kagami looked at Riko in surprise. "The truth is, I don't want to send out an injured player, but we can't win without you. We've been calling it team play, but it's actually a style someone taught me."**

"Who?" The other team asked. 'They sound like owls.' Seirin mentally thought. "You'll see." Seirin told the other teams much to their displeasure.

" **Someone?" Kagami asked.**

" **I'm not strong enough to draw out everyone's full potential, so I have to rely on you even though you are injured." Riko said. "My own weakness pisses me off."**

" **What are you talking about?" Kagami asked. "This isn't like you."**

" **Huh?"**

" **You make practice menus, you scout, you give instructions in the bench and even massage and tape us." Kagami said. "If anything, you do too much. You're the coach. You've got to come at least prepared during matches."**

"Are you cheering her up or making her feel worse?" Kuroko asked Kagami. "You need to make your message more clear."

"Shut up!" Kagami said.

" **I mean, sending me off with an apology hardly amps me up." Kagami said.**

 **After a moment of silence, Riko smiled. "You are a brat, Bakagami." She said. The buzzer rang to announce a member change. "Go get them!"**

" **Yeah." Kagami said.**

 **At that moment, Aomine shows up and warps an arm around Kagami's shoulder. "That's it show some spirit." He said. Kagami was caught off guard. "So you can entertain me, even a little."**

Kagami brushed his shouldersto get rid of Aomine's germs. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He asked Aomine. "You're not allowed at the opposition's bench."

"I was just coming to say hi." Aomine said with a smirk. "There's nothing wrong with that last time I checked."

" **You bastard, Aomine!" Kagami yelled as he swat away Aomine's arm. Aomine's sudden appearance surprised everyone at Seirin.**

" **You're finally here." Imayoshi said. "Hurry up and get ready to play."**

" **Huh? But you are winning." Aomine said. "Not to mention, there is only one minute left in the second quarter."**

" **No, you have to play." Harasawa said.**

" **Fine." Aomine said. He put his bag on the bench and tossed his jacket at Momoi.**

"By the way Satsuki, why did my jacket have footprints all over it?" Aomine asked. "Maybe because I stomped all over it." Momoi said innocently. "What!? Why!?" Aomine asked. "Because I'm your manager, not your mom." Momoi said. "I shouldn't clean things after you."

" **Let's go." Aomine said with a fierce look.**

"Title of the episode." Takao said.

 **The screen faded to the ending.**

Takao started to sing along with the ending.

 **Everything in the picture was the same except the picture of Riko, Hyuuga and Izuki were replaced by Kasamatsu and Kise. Both of them seem to be going somewhere. Kise seems to be talking about something urgent in his cellphone.**

"Where are you two going?" Kobori asked. "No clue." Kasamatsu said.

At the end of the opening, everyone respectfully clapped Takao on his nice singing.

"Muro-chin should sing his song too." Murasakibara said. "No, thank you." Himuro said.

 **The screen changed to the character segment. This time it showed Kise.**

"It's me." Kise said with a cheerful smile. 'Oh, great!' Some people mentally thought.

 **Name: Kise Ryouta**

 **Age: 16**

 **Birthday: June 18th, Gemini.**

"You're lucky, Kise." Midorima said. "Today's Oha-asa said that Gemini is 1st and your lucky item is a storage rack."

 **Height: 189 cm**

 **Weight: 77 kg**

 **Blood Type: A**

"Does that mean I have to go to Kise-kun for a blood transfusion?" Kuroko asked. "How tragic."

"Kurokocchi!" Kise said with crocodile tears.

 **Best subject: English**

"It's his least worst one." Kasamatsu said.

 **Alternative job: Pilot**

"Love the idea of flying and seeing different parts of the world." Kise said.

 **Favorite pastime:...**

"Karaoke." Kise's current and former teammates said.

 **...Karaoke**

 **Specialty: Mineral water tasting**

"In other words, I can tell which part of the country different mineral waters are from." Kise said. 'That's good because…?' Everyone else wondered.

 **Favorite food: Onion gratin soup**

 **Favorite type of girl: Type that won't tie him down.**

"I wonder how much his fangirls would sell for that information?" Takao said.

 **Favorite Movie: Harry Potter**

"Saw all eight movies the day they were released and even read all the books." Kise said proudly. "Really?" Midorima said in disbelief. "All seven of them?"

"Yep." Kise said.

 **Hates: Earthworms and Unagi**

"Earthworms are disgusting and I had an Unagi bone stuck on my throat once." Kise said.

 **Hears the wind when he is uninterested in something.**

Done! As you can tell, the Kiseki no Sedai won the poll for the character segment. I'll mention them in the order they were introduced in the story. So you already know who is next! Anyway, hope you like this chapter. Please R&R.


	23. Chapter 23

Hey guys! Sorry for the delay! As you might have guessed, I ended up losing motivation at some point writing this chapter. But I did keep going, bit by bit, writing sentence by sentence. Somehow I got it back and tried to finish this chapter. Hope you ejoy!

Episode 17

 **The episode started with a recap on the Seirin Vs. Touou match so far. It showed the title of the episode "You are all ridiculous."**

"That certainly describes Seirin." Lui said. "Who else?" Fukai said

 **With 31 seconds left in the quarter, Touou changes one of it's members with Aomine.**

"I like the music." Aomine said with a smile. "It makes me look epic."

"Apparently this music is called Misdirection." Takao said. "Misdirection?" Everyone said in confusion. "But that's Kuroko's thing." Kagami said. "Why would they play something like that for Ahomine?"

' **This is Aomine Daiki.' Hyuga thought.**

' **Even normal basketball players like us, can tell he is different without the coach's special eyes.' Izuki said.**

' **I never met anyone this good in America.' Kagami thought.**

Aomine had a very smug look in his face. 'God damn these thoughts.' Everyone else thought. "At this rate, Aomine-kun's ego will be as big as Kise-kun's." Kuroko said. "I know right." Kise said. He blinked as he realized what Kuroko meant. "Kurokocchi!?"

' **Kuroko's middle school strongest regular.'**

"Excuse me?" Akashi said with a raised eyebrow. "This was before I met you." Kagami quickly said. Akashi relax and Kagami sighed in relief. 'I guess the saying really is true.' Kagami thought. 'The smallest people are the scariest people.'

' **The ace of the Kiseki no Sedai.'**

' **Not only did we fail to get ahead, but we're ten points behind.' Riko thought. 'He got here at the worst possible time.'**

" **Yo, Tetsu." Aomine greeted his former teammate. "Long time no see. I was wondering what face you would make." The screen changed to show Kuroko's face. "I like it. You look like you are ready to go."**

"Aominecchi, what kind of a greeting is that?" Kise said with a disappointed face. "At least I gave him a greeting." Aomine countered. "Midorima didn't even bother and told Tetsu he didn't like him."

"Yeah but Midorimacchi is tsundere." Kise said. "He doesn't do greetings."

"Why are you talking about me!?" Midorima yelled at him. "This is Aomine's episode so focus on him!"

" **Yes. I promised Momoi-san." Kuroko said.**

 **Aomine chuckled. "I more or less understand what you want to say. But you'll have to show me that with your play." He said. "Well, either way...say it to me once you've beaten me." Aomine said with an intense look.**

 **Kuroko didn't look intimidated and simply said "Yes."**

 **Aomine walked past Kuroko and Kagami and added. "If you can." He added.**

"Is it just me or does Aomine look like a bad guy?" Midorima asked. "He does look more evil compare to me and Midorimacchi when our matches were shown." Kise said. "What the hell are you talking about?" Aomine asked. "I'm no bad guy!"

 **Kagami glared back at him. "Bring it on!" He growled. "We'll show you right away!"**

"Kagami-kun you really need to calm down during matches." Kuroko told him. "I can't help it!" Kagami yelled. "Ahomine's attitude was annoying me and with that pumping."

"That?" Kuroko asked. "Yeah." Kagami said. "You know...the thing that makes people super aware of their surroundings." He trying hard to remember that word. "Are you talking about adrenaline?" Kuroko asked. "Yeah!" Kagami said in excitement. "That's it!" Kuroko sighed. "Please expand your vocabulary, Kagami-kun." Kuroko said. "My brain is dying because of you." Everyone laughed while Kagami glared at Kuroko.

 **The game resumed with Susa having the ball. He passed the ball to Sakurai who passed it to Imayoshi. Seeing that Wakamatsu and him were guarded well, Imayoshi passed the ball back to Sakurai.**

" **What's this?" Otsubo said. From the top view showed that while the right side of the court was full of players, the entire left side of court was empty aside from the aces.**

"What's going on?" Hayama asked. "Isolation." The smart people said. "Isolation?" Hayama asked. Before anyone could explain, Akashi said. "Instead of explaining, why don't we just watch the video. I'm sure it'll explain."

"That's true." Imayoshi said. "And going by their track I'm sure it'll be very soon."

" **Hey, their balance is off." Someone in the audience said. "Don't they too many guys on one side?"**

" **No," Another person in the audience said. "They're doing this on purpose."**

" **Isolation." Kise said. At the moment, Aomine had the ball.**

" **In order to allow special players to move freely, the remaining players gather on one side." Midorima said.**

"So that's what it is." Hayama said. "I love these video explanation."

" **There are several reasons to use this technique, but in this situation it's exactly what it looks like." Midorima said. "It's one-on-one between both teams' aces."**

"Did you two really not move one bit during Midorima's explanation?" Mayuzumi asked. "I was sizing him up." Kagami and Aomine said simultaneously. "I'm surprised the ref didn't call foul on Aomine for holding the ball so long." Mayuzumi said. "Or was Midorima's explanation that short?"

"Let's not worry about the technicalities." Mibuchi said. "If we do, our head will start to hurt."

 **After a moment of silence, Aomine smirked. Kagami looked at him in surprise. Aomine started to move. Kagami tried to keep up with him but he was too fast and in no time, Aomine passed him.**

"So fast." Everyone said. Aomine just smirked.

' **He's fast.' Izuki thought in shock. 'He can break past Kagami that easily?'**

 **Hyuga came to stop him but Aomine easily slipped past him. 'Amazing!' Hyuga thought.**

 **Aomine went for the shot, but Kagami pushed the ball away from his hand.**

"Where did he come from?" Kasamatsu asked with wide eyes.

 **Aomine was surprised. 'He caught up in the second it took to roll?' He thought in wonder.**

" **He stopped him!" Riko exclaimed**

" **Alright, Kagami!" Koganei said.**

" **So high!" Midorima exclaimed with wide eyes.**

' **How did he jump so high from that position?' Kise thought. He was equally surprised.**

"It was higher than our practice match." Kise said.

" **Now! Fast break!" Hyuga exclaimed. He had the ball in his hand which he quickly passed to Izuki. But Touou, has already caught up to them.**

" **They are quick to get back." Kawahara said.**

" **And they know all the upperclassmen moves through research." Furi said.**

" **You can take your fast break and shove it." Wakamatsu said.**

 **Imayoshi came to take the ball from Izuki but Izuki quickly passed the ball to Kuroko who passed it to Kagami via Ignite Pass.**

" **What is that?" Imayoshi asked in shock.**

"You guys didn't know about the Ignite Pass?" Kasamatsu asked. "Nope." Everyone in Touou aside from Aomine and Momoi said. "That's strange." Kobori said. "Because the Kiseki no Sedai clearly know about the pass."

"We mostly focused on the second years." Imayoshi said.

 **Kagami caught the ball and went for a dunk but Aomine blocked him.**

"Payback." Aomine said with a smirk.

' **He was off balance and slow to return' Hyuga observed.**

' **He's fast!' Riko thought.**

 **With that the quarter ended. "Oh, it's over?" Aomine said "I was going to score one as a quick warm up."**

"Good, his attitude pisses me off!" Kagami growled. "Please calm down." Kuroko said. "We got them back so just let it go."

"Easy for you to say." Kagami growled at him. "You have the tolerance of a saint."

" **What is this? Sheesh…" Aomine turned to Seirin. "Pretty good, though." He told them. "At ten points behind, I thought you guys must suck but you're not bad, are you?"**

 **Meanwhile everyone is the audience was impressed by Aomine's speed except his former teammates. "Aominecchi…" Kise said.**

" **He's completely unbearable." Midorima said in resignation.**

'I can say the same thing about him.' Aomine thought.

" **He's slow, like he has no desire to play."**

" **Aomine, you bastard, play as hard as you can." Wakamatsu told him. "You let that guy block you."**

" **Huh?" Aomine said. "I can't play that hard. I'm tired."**

"How long is it going to take to get to the Winter Cup?" Kagami asked. "No clue." Kuroko said. "A lot has happened in between so please be patient."

"That's quite the tall order you're asking from Taiga." Himuro said to Kuroko.

"I know." Kuroko said with a sigh. "But he has no choice."

" **You bastard!"**

" **But…" Aomine said with a smirk as he looked towards Seirin's bench. "I might actually try in the second half." With the second quarter ending, the teams are having a ten minute break.**

 **In Touou's locker room, "Ryou, did you bring them?" Aomine asked Sakurai. The screen revealed really nice looking honey lemons.**

'Those look so good.' The other Kiseki no Sedai members thought. "I want some honey lemon." Murasakibara said. "Same" Akashi said.

"In that case, I make some for you later Sei-chan." Mibuchi said. "Thank you Mibuchi-san." Akashi said. "Murasakibara can join us as well." Mibuchi said. "Is that okay?" Murasakibara asked. "Of course!" Mibuchi said. "A friend of Sei-chan is a friend of mine." Takao noticed that his partner had a longing look in his eyes so…"Mibuchi-san." Takao called out. "Could Shin-chan and I have some as well?" Midorima looked at Takao in shock while Mibuchi said. "Fine."

"Takao, what are you doing?" Midorima asked. "You don't want any?" Takao asked. "I never said that." Midorima said. "Mibuchi-san is going through the trouble of making them." Such a typical tsundere… "It's no trouble at all." Mibuchi said. "I'll make some for the rest of Sei-chan's friends as well."

"Great/Sorry for the trouble/Thank you." Aomine, Kise and Kuroko said respectively. "You guys really love honey lemons, huh?" Kagami asked. 'Who wouldn't after eating Momoi's' Was the Kiseki no Sedai's thought.

 **Aomine had one. "Ah, it's delicious." He said.**

" **Aomine, what are you eating!?" Wakamatsu yelled.**

"Honestly, he's always after me." Aomine said in annoyance. "He wouldn't be if you weren't such a pain." Imayoshi told him. "He should just mind his own business." Aomine said. "Unfortunately as a senpai, I can't mind my own business!" Wakamatsu told him.

" **You haven't played enough to need to replenish yourself!"**

"So true." Everyone said.

" **And, Sakurai, don't make him food!"**

"Sorry!" Sakurai apologized.

" **What are you, his manager!?"**

" **Sorry…" Sakurai said.**

 **After that, Wakamatsu started eating the honey lemon. "I'm way more tired." He said.**

" **Give me some!" Imayoshi told Wakamatsu.**

 **But Wakamatsu continued eating. "These are delicious."**

"You're so mean Wakamatsu." Imayoshi said. "Eating all those honey lemon by yourself."

" **There is none left." Wakamatsu said to Aomine.**

" **I don't want any more." Aomine said.**

" **What did you say?"**

" **Don't eat them all." Imayoshi said in exasperation**

" **It's okay." Momoi said. "I made some."**

Noticing the blank look on Touou and the Kiseki no Sedai, Kagami asked Kuroko. "Guessing she's not the best cook?" Kuroko was quiet for a minute before he said. "It's on the same level as coach." His teammates were shocked silenced before turning to Touou and said. "You have our sympathies."

"As do you." Touou said.

" **Oh thank you." Imayoshi said. Once he saw Momoi's honey lemon, he turned to Sakurai.**

'Wow that is bad.' Those that didn't know Momoi's cooking thought.

" **Sakurai, do you have any more?"**

" **Sorry, I'm all out." Sakurai said.**

" **Yeah, Satsuki's cooking is terrible." Aomine said casually as he stretches.**

'You don't say.' All the guys thought while Momoi just huffed. "I'll get better." She said. "You've been saying that since forever and yet your cooking is the same as ever." Aomine said. Momoi hit him hard with her clipboard.

" **Is this a level below cooking?" Imayoshi said. He's voice gradually getting louder as he finishes his sentence.**

Everyone chuckled.

 **Meanwhile in Serin locker room…**

" **Everyone good work." Riko said. "I made these so you can make a great comeback." She gave them a container. It contained honey lemons that looked as appetizing as Momoi's.**

"You as well, huh?" Kasamatsu asked with a blank look. Seirin just sighed.

" **Slice them." Hyuga said. "We are always telling you to slice them."**

"Why doesn't she ever listen?" Hyuga said. "Her food would actually be edible if she just listened."

" **I washed them so you can eat the skin." Riko said.**

"The skin of a lemon isn't a sponge that can absorb the honey." Mibuchi said. "You need to slice them so that way the lemon can absorb the honey. Otherwise all you're eating is a honey coated lemon. Plus it's easier to eat when the portion is smaller."

"Is that so?" Momoi said as she took notes. 'Isn't that common knowledge!' Everyone else thought.

" **And you'll be able to eat lots."**

" **Mitobe, do you have any?" Izuki quickly asked Mitobe. Mitobe nodded as he brought out his container. He's looked just as nice as Sakurai's.**

"Thank god for Mitobe." Hyuga said. His teammates agreed

" **Mitobe, I'm so glad you are on our team." Hyuga said happily as he and his teammates eat some honey lemon.**

"You don't change at all Hyuga." Izuki said. "You can't expect a person to change in a span of half a year." Hyuga yelled.

 **Meanwhile, Riko was mopping in the background.**

 **Kagami looked back and noticed Kuroko was not eating any. "Kuroko, don't you want any?" He asked.**

" **No, I'm good." Kuroko said.**

" **Kuroko-kun, you played the whole first quarter, so I'm taking you out for a bit." Riko said. "You have to replenish your nutrients."**

" **Please let me keep playing during the second half." Kuroko said.**

"Oh yeah, I totally forgot about your rebellious phase." Kagami said. "That was one time compare to Kagami-kun's hundred rebellious phase." Kuroko told him. "Oi!" Kagami yelled at him.

"You know, when people normally say that, they sound really arrogant." Kasamatsu said. "And yet Kuroko sounds so polite."

"Kurokocchi is a mystery." Kise said. "That you still haven't solved despite being friends with him for three years?" Kasamatsu asked with a blank look. "That's how tough of a mystery Kurokocchi is!" Kise said quickly. "Even Akashicchi has a hard time understanding Kurokocchi!"

" **What?" Riko said.**

 **Back in Touou's locker room, Coach Katsunori clapped his hands. "Come on, it's too early to relax." He said. "Let's talk about the second half."**

" **I'll pass." Aomine said.**

" **Aomine, you bastard! Wait!" Wakamatsu said.**

" **I'll make all my shots in the next quarter." Aomine said. "That should do it, right?"**

"Here comes the Aomine arrogance phase." Susa said. "What do you mean phase?" Wakamatsu said. "He is still arrogant."

" **You bastard!"**

" **As long as you understand." Katsunori said. "Make sure you go warm up."**

" **Okay." Aomine said.**

" **Aomine-kun." Momoi said as she ran after him.**

" **Coach!" Wakamatsu said. Before he could start complaining, Imayoshi said "Wakamatsu, don't make such a big deal every time."**

" **But that attitude…" Wakamatsu said. "Don't you think he's too arrogant?"**

 **Imayoshi sighed. "Who cares if he is?" He said. "Haven't you ever felt it in a TV interview? There are plenty of arrogant top tier players."**

"Actually I read somewhere that all that arrogance is simply a facade for the TV." Otsubo said. "Of course, there are some athletes that can rival Aomine in terms of arrogance but most of the famous players are usually humble. Even when they win a lot, they never assumed they would their next match."

"Modesty is an attractive trait." Kuroko said. "Exactly." Otsubo said. "Imayoshi-senpai needs to refine his research." Wakamatsu said as he and the rest of Touou gave Imayoshi an unimpressed look. Imayoshi felt his eyebrows twitch. "I'll keep that in mind from now on." Imayoshi said.

" **Put negatively, it's arrogance, insolence. But put positively, it's overwhelming confidence that comes from successive victories. Don't get the wrong idea. I don't particularly like or dislike Aomine."**

"Feelings mutual, Cappy." Aomine said.

" **As long as he scores, I don't care what his personality is like. I have no complaints as long as he plays." Imayoshi passed the basketball in his hand to Wakamatsu. Wakamatsu caught it in surprise. "We are most likely to win if he does."**

' **I've always thought that our team is united by our selfishness.' Sakurai thought. 'We abandon trust and each man is out for himself. But for some reason I don't feel like we'll lose.'**

"Isn't it because you trust your ace?" Kagami said. Everyone stared at him. "I mean you don't need to necessary like someone in order to trust them. All you need to know is how reliable someone is. And annoying as that Aho is, he is a tough player… so saying that you abandon trust isn't exactly right." Kagami said. Everyone, especially Touou stared at Kagami with wide eyes. "So even Bakagami have moments of wisdom." Hyuga muttered. Kagami felt an arrow stab his back.

" **I've had enough." Momoi said after she caught up to Aomine. "I can't believe you were actually late. What do you think you're doing? We are up against Tetsu-kun's team!"**

" **Shut up! I know." Aomine said before Momoi could continue with her lecture. "I feel bad about what I did."**

Kagami raised an eyebrow. He highly doubts that.

" **I misread them a little. I should have shown up sooner."**

 **Back in Seirin's locker room, "Aomine will be tough without Kuroko." Hyuga said. "Can we manage it?"**

" **Two quarters back to back." Riko said. Her voice showed she was wasn't having a good feeling about this.**

" **Your misdirection won't last." Hyuga told Kuroko.**

"Too bad I didn't know overflow at that time." Kuroko said. "Considering the risks, I think it's a good thing you didn't." Hyuga said. "And honestly, I think our team needed that loss."

"True, we wouldn't have improved as much if it weren't for that loss." Koganei said nodding his head. "Although, Koganei-senpai really didn't improve that much." Fukuda said with a blank look. Koganei felt an arrow stab his back. "You guys need to stop hanging out with Kuroko!" He said. "What did I do?" Kuroko asked.

" **I don't think we should do it." Izuki said. "I've been watching with my eagle eye, but your effectiveness has already dropped off quite a bit. You should sit out for a while."**

" **I can do it." Kuroko said with a determined look. "No I will do it." Kagami just stared at Kuroko. "I will do anything to beat Aomine-kun."**

"You definitely proved that during the Winter Cup." Kagami said.

" **I appreciate your enthusiasm, but…" Hyuga said with a wary expression.**

' **We couldn't afford to bench Kuroko-kun in the first half.' Riko thought. 'It'll only be harder with Aomine-kun. But if we make him keep playing, he won't last until the end. What should we do?'**

"You are definitely facing a tricky situation." Kasamatsu said.

 **After observing Kuroko for a while, Kagami said. "Coach, could I get those?"**

" **What?" Riko asked.**

" **Kuroko." Kagami said. Kuroko looked up only to have one of Riko's lemon stuffed into his mouth.**

"Why would you do that to Kurokocchi?" Kise exclaimed."Seriously, there is no reason to subject him to torture just because he was being stubborn." Aomine said. "Kaga-chin is horrible." Murasakibara said. "Even Akashi wouldn't do something like that." Midorima said. "What's that supposed to mean?" Akashi asked. But no one answered him.

" **Just eat one of those on the bench, you idiot." Kagami said. "You are the one who said you can't play basketball by yourself! Leave it to us!"**

' **Both choices are risky, and I can't reach an answer.' Riko thought. 'If that's the case, I'll have to rely on our ace enthusiasm.'**

"Is that a good idea?" Wei Lui asked. "Despite his appearance, Taiga is reliable when it comes to basketball." Himuro said.

" **Okay!" Riko said. "We'll take Kuroko-kun out for a little bit during the second half. Our battle will begin in the fourth quarter! But it's meaningless if you pass the point of no return. Be read to play anytime in case we get close." She directed the last part to Kuroko.**

 **Kuroko gave a silent nod.**

" **Have some lemons." Riko said.**

" **Eh?" Kuroko said while he warily looked at the lemon.**

"You could just refuse." Wakamastu said. "Did you forget about who we are talking about here?" Kagami asked as he lightly tapped Kuroko's head with his fist. "He is too polite for his own good." Kasamatsu said.

" **Their inside is especially strong." Riko said. "We'll put in Tsuchida-kun during the third quarter."**

"Did Tsuchida-san ever play?" Takao asked, "He played during the Seiho match." Midorima told him. "Oh right!" Takao said. "He was the one that gave the two rebounds that Koganei-san missed." Koganei felt an arrow stab him in the heart. Meanwhile Tsuchida was in tears. "Am I that insignificant?" He asked. His teammates sighed.

" **You and Mitobe-kun will guard the net." Tsuchida and Mitobe nodded. "Hyuga and Izuki, keep doing what you did in the first half."**

 **The screen showed Sakurai performing a shot. "Keep marks on that mushroom, No. 9…"**

" **Sorry!"**

Sakurai twitched while his teammates laughed.

" **...and that glasses wearing No.4." The screen showed Imayoshi.**

" **The biggest problem is Aomine, but there is only one guy who can handle him." Riko said. She directed the last part to Kagami. "Kagami, we are counting on you."**

" **Got it!"**

 **As Seirin was heading to the court, Kuroko called out to Kagami. "Kagami-kun."**

" **What is it?" Kagami asked. "Have you calmed down?"**

" **Yes. More importantly…" Kuroko said. Kagami looked at him. "I have not seen Aomine-kun's limit since he bloomed. Not only that, but just like Kise-kun and Midorima-kun, he has probably grown."**

"That's a given." Everyone said.

" **Going forward, he is an unknown value. Be careful."**

" **I couldn't ask for more." Kagami said with a smirk.**

"Kagami can definitely give Aomine a run for his money in terms of arrogance." Midorima said. "I was only like this in the past." Kagami muttered. "I've matured." His teammates gave him a look of disbelief.

 **The second half begins. Seirin was at the court warming up when they looked towards the entrance. "He's here." Hyuga said.**

 **Aomine entered the court with a towel around his head. The aura around him was very serious. "Let's do this already." He said.**

' **He's body is properly warmed up.' Hyuga mentally observed. 'He's serious.'**

"I couldn't let people think that was all it took to beat me." Aomine said with a yawn. "Things are going to be intense." Takao said. "This music always comes when things get intense."

"Looking back in the episode, they always played this whenever Kagami was confronting one of us." Kise said. "I must admit I was not expecting such an observation from Kise-kun." Kuroko said. "I had the best mentor when it came to observation." Kise said with brightly. "I honestly can't remember teaching you something like that." Kuroko said with a blank look.

" **Hey, did you finish warming up?" Kagami asked with a smirk.**

" **Keep fighting until the end." Aomine told him. "If you have it in you."**

 **The buzzer begin symbolizing the start of the third quarter. Kuroko was sitting on the bench.**

 **Takao blinked. "Kuroko's on the bench?"**

"When you think about Kuroko's skill it makes sense to bench him." Midorima said.

" **Are they going to be okay?"**

" **It couldn't be helped." Midorima said. "But they couldn't afford to sub out Kuroko even when Aomine didn't play. I don't think they'll endure this."**

'The result spoke for itself.' Hyuga thought.

" **You are right." Kise said.**

' **It's true that playing against Aominecchi without Kurokocchi is going to be difficult." Kise said. 'But when I consider the rate of his growth, I get the feeling something is going to happen.' Meanwhile, Sakurai was able to pass the ball to Wakamatsu who passed it to Aomine. Kagami stood in front of Aomine to defend against him. 'He can do it.'**

"Underestimating me as well, Kise?" Aomine asked. "In my defense, I have not seen you since middle school graduation." Kise said. "You don't even bother to stay in contact even now, cutting out my calls and everything."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk Dai-chan." Momoi said. "Don't give me that!" Aomine said. "It's not like I'm the only one who hasn't kept in contact."

"Actually…Midorimacchi and Kurokocchi always answers my phone whenever I called them." Kise said. "Murasakibaracchi as well-although those calls are very short and for some reason he is always annoyed. Akashicchi and I don't get a chance to talk a lot but he's never missed or disconnected a call when I do contact him."

"What the hell!?" Aomine exclaimed looking at the four people. "Why would you do that? You know he mostly calls to be annoying."

"Cause unlike you, we have a heart." The four replied.

" **Aomine's already playing." Someone said with a groan.**

' **It'll be all him, not just now, but during the entire second half.' Riko thought. 'The ace of the Kiseki no Sedia and super scorer…'**

' **If we are forced to put Kuroko in right away, he'll ran out of gas and in the fourth quarter it will only get worse.' Izuki thought.**

' **We can't do anything against him.' Hyuga thought.**

"Senpai, you do realize that all of this is just going to boost his already huge ego." Kuroko told Izuki and Hyuga. "It's the truth." Izuki and Hyuga said. "Some truths are better left not said." Kuroko said solemnly. "But we didn't say it, we thought it." Hyuga said. "Yeah! How were we supposed to know our thoughts are going to be broadcasted?" Izuki said. "Hmmm…I wonder if I can make a pun out of that."

"Don't even think about it!" Hyuga said hitting Izuki's side with an elbow. Izuki grunted in pain.

' **It's up to you, Kagami!'**

' **You're fired up.' Aomine mentally observed. 'Does this mean it won't be like last time in the park?**

"Nope. It's the same." Aomine said with smug smile. Kagami's eyebrow twitched.

' **Well either way…' Aomine got ready to make his move. 'It's pointless.' Before Kagami could do anything, Aomine zoomed past him.**

' **Again! Kagami can't keep up!' Izuki thought.**

' **He didn't fake me out, but I still can't keep up!' Kagami thought. 'He's unbelievably fast.' Mitobe and Tsuchida tried to stop him but Aomine got into a fadeaway position.**

' **A fadeaway!' Izuki thought with a shocked expression. 'How can anyone make a quick stop at that speed and jump backwards?'**

' **We can't keep up even with the fast help.' Hyuga thought. 'They're in different class!'**

" **When it comes to movement, speed is not all about maximum speed." Midorima gave a voiceover as the screen showed Aomine getting ready to shoot. "Your acceleration from zero to max and your deceleration from max to zero. Agility, how quick you are on your feet. Even amongst the Kiseki no Sedai, Aomine transcend the rest of us."**

Aomine had a smug expression in his face while everyone groaned. "Great job Midorimacchi, you gave Aominecchi a big head." Kise said. "How was I supposed know that Ahomine was going to hear my opinions?" Midorima snapped. "Why, thank you for acknowledging my skills Midorima." Aomine said with a huge grin. 'He may be fast on his feet but he isn't fast enough to notice Midorima calling him an idiot.' Everyone else thought.

 **Kagami jumped to push the ball away, but Aomine avoided him by tossing the ball up. 'I can't keep up!' Kagami thought. 'He's even faster than before.'**

"Well duh!" Aomine said. "That was just a warmup."

' **This guy…' Aomine thought with wide eyes.**

'Looks like I surprised him.' Kagami thought smugly. "Don't start getting a big head now." Kuroko said. "One is enough."

'Is he a psychic?' Kagami wondered with a blank face.

"You are just easy to read." Kuroko said.

 **The ball still went in. The fans cheered. "Even I could do that." Wakamatsu said.**

 **Imayoshi quickly realizing something said "No!"**

"Run and gun." Every one of Seirin's opponents said.

 **Hyuga gave a long toss while Kagami was already running to the other side.**

' **Fast break!' Momoi said.**

" **Slam it in, Kagami!"**

 **Kagami took the ball and jumped to dunk it but Aomine slapped the ball away from him. "No you don't." Aomine said.**

' **No matter how fast I run, I can't break free of this guy!' Kagami thought.**

" **You think it's that easy to make a fast break?" Aomine asked.**

' **Is this guy serious?' Aomine thought. 'He just jumped from the free throw line.'**

"Foreshadow." Kuroko said. "What?" Kagami asked. "Meteor jump was foreshadowed." Kuroko said. Akashi nodded while everyone gave a confused look.

' **Don't tell me he was trying to dunk from there?'**

"He can, you know." Everyone said. "I didn't know that then!" Aomine said.

' **Come on, now.'**

" **Damn it, almost." Furihata said.**

" **But we are doing better than I expected." While the trio looked hopeful, Kuroko had a tense look on his face.**

Seirin sighed. The naivety.

 **Aomine laughed. "Enough." He said. "Honest basketball just isn't for me after all."**

"So does that mean Aomine-kun is a cheater?" Kuroko asked. "You know very well what I mean, Tetsu!" Aomine exclaimed while everyone laughed.

' **He seems different.' Kagami thought. 'But I'm starting to get a feel for his speed and rhythm."**

"If you can't keep up, it won't be much help." Imayoshi said.

 **Kagami tried to block Aomine but Aomine passed the ball behind Kagami. Before Kagami could react, Aomine turned around and took the ball. Kagami tried to stop him but Aomine kept on using obscuring movements to throw him off. 'What is up with those movements?' Hyuga thought. 'I can't read them. Is this some kind of anomaly?'**

"What does anomaly mean?" Kise asked. "Something that defies expectation, like Kuroko." Akashi said. "Did you have to use me as an example, Akashi-kun?" Kuroko said. "I didn't say anything wrong." Akashi said. "In that case, all the members of the Kiseki no Sedai are an anomaly." Mayuzumi said. Everyone except said members nodded.

' **No! They're unconventional tricky movements.' Kagami thought.**

"We have people finishing thoughts, we have people answer questions that other people asked out loud from a distance and now we have people answering questions other people asked in their head with their head." Kotaro said. "What's next?"

' **I've seen this plenty of times in America.'**

"Hence why I went to America to train." Kagami said.

' **It's street ball!' Kagami slipped on his feet and fell while Aomine zoomed past him.**

"Revenge is so nice." Kagami said thinking about Winter Cup. Aomine scowled.

 **Aomine jumped to dunk the ball. Hyuga, Mitobe and Tsuchida tried to stop him but Aomine dodged them by going behind the basket. "He went behind the goal!" Riko said happily.**

Seirin groaned. "That is such an annoying move." Hyuga said.

 **Right before Aomine landed on the ground, he tossed the ball behind him which landed on the basket much to Seirin's shock.**

' **What was that bullshit!' Riko thought.**

"Coach cursed!" Seirin exclaimed. "Not out loud." Kuroko said. "Doesn't matter, she still cursed." Kagami said. "She's the same age as our senpais" Kuroko said.

' **This guy's basketball is more than aggressive.' Hyuga thought. 'It's messed up!'**

"It is not!" Aomine said defensively. "My basketball is awesome!"

" **The Kiseki no Sedai is full of ridiculous guys." Kagami said with a smile.**

"You are just as ridiculous." Said member said.

 _ **Ending song**_

"1 more episode for the day." Kasamatsu said.

 **Picture of Takao pulling Midorima with a rear cart. Beside him was a life-size penguin and little children chasing and point at it.**

"What the hell is that penguin?" Takao asked. "Probably my lucky item." Midorima said. 'Where the _hell_ does he find these items!?' Everyone mentally thought.

 **The screen went blank.**

"Special ending story." Takao cheered.

 **Touou Gakuen appeared on the screen. "Everyone hurry up we need to get these out as soon as possible." Imayoshi said. In his hand was a plate of omelette.**

"What's going on?" Himuro asked. "Fundraiser" Susa said.

" **Easy for you to say, these plates are heavy." Wakamatsu said. "Where the hell is Aomine?"  
"Leave him." Imayoshi said. "He'll be more of a pain than help." **

" **Senpai, I finished the first dish." Sakurai said showing his omelette. "Wow, those look good." Imayoshi said. "Nice work."**

" **Momoi isn't in the kitchen is she?" Wakamatsu asked with a worried look.**

" **I asked her to advertise." Imayoshi said.**

"Smart." Everyone said.

" **We are about to start. Let's raise a lot of money."**

"So Imayoshi does have a heart." Otsubo said. "You wound me." Imayoshi said.

Done! Finally I'll be able to update after a long time. But don't expect frequent chapters. I'll try to update when I can.


End file.
